ASC/MSRRC REGIONAL EVENTS

UPCOMING EVENTS

The Mid-South RRC, in conjunction with our national TA partners, is offering a webinar for state Part B and Part C staff involved in the planning, implementation, and/or evaluation of state improvement systems to address state performance on Annual Performance Report Indicators.

The webinar will include an exposition of the framework for developing an improvement system to address any APR indicator, followed by examples presented by state Part B and Part C staff. 

REGISTER HERE for this webinar.

Webinar Logistics: This webinar will be conducted over the phone and using an online web conferencing system.

In order to join the Webinar please go to-
https://admin.na3.acrobat.com/_a785425633/room1

The system requires you to have the latest version of Adobe Flash (which you can download for free) so you might want to check your system at least 15 minutes ahead of the scheduled time. 
 
Enter as a guest- type your name in and you will be added to the room.  Once you log in you will be asked to enter your phone number and the system will call you back immediately to add you to the voice part of the Webinar.

If you are unable to use the auto-dialing feature, please dial 1-866-910-4857, passcode 815487.

This forum will begin with an introduction to improvement strategy systems followed by state planning sessions. States will be asked to send a team of staff who are assigned responsibility for one APR Indicator or a set of related indicators (e.g., C5 & C6). The purpose of this meeting is to discuss a systems approach to the design, implementation, tracking, and evaluation of improvement activities. Staff will develop a state-specific plan for establishing or refining their system which will inform the development of their APR to be submitted in February 2009. Mid-South will invite the participation of OSEP TA Specialty Centers to participate in this forum to assist states with their specific Indicator challenges in their state planning sessions.

Materials & Presentations:

• Register here
• Draft Agenda

PAST REGIONAL MEETINGS

A formal agenda is still being developed. The following general discussion topics were identified by states:

• Verification visits - how to prepare
• Disproportionality
• Early Intervening Services
• RtI at the Secondary Level
• Local Determinations -- what rubrics are you using?
• Correction of noncompliance and/or other discussion related to the messages delivered at the NAC/OSEP Leadership conference.

Materials & Presentations:

• Agenda

Lead agency (LA) and State Education Agency (SEA) staff and members from the State Advisory Panels and Interagency Coordinating Councils (ICCs) in the Mid-South region expressed an interest in meeting with their peers to discuss key issues related to fulfilling federal and state requirements. In response, the MSRRC, in collaboration with the National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center (NECTAC), the Mountain Plains Regional Resource Center (MPRRC), and the Region II Parent Technical Assistance Center, hosted this meeting. LAs were invited to send the Chairperson of the ICC and a staff support person and the SEA was invited to send the Chairperson of the State Advisory Panel and an SEA staff support person.

This forum covered General Supervision and Data Management, Early Childhood Transition, Preschool Outcomes and other 619 issues. Previously, the forum was only to cover General Supervision, but opportunities to be more efficient in scheduling travel and cover a greater number of topics presented themselves. Outcomes included the following:

Joint Session: Part B Directors, Part C Coordinators and 619 Coordinators

Gain an understanding of the recommended components and elements needed for state systems of effective transition.

Begin to problem-solve how to use the transition document (Designing and Implementing Effective EC Transition Process) as a resource to guide planning and application of recommended practices.

Explore beginning steps for the implementation of components of recommended transition practices in your own state context.

Session for Part B staff: General Supervision and Data Usage

Gain an understanding of the definitions, 616/618 relationships, accurate collection, verification, analysis, and utilization of data for improvement.

Regional session: Early Childhood Transition

Further explore the essential components/elements for an effective transition system.

Gain an understanding of IDEA transition requirements and SPP/APR data elements related to transition (C8 & B12).

Gain information on strategies or methods for collecting and verifying data to respond to SPP/APR indicators (e.g., transition C8 and B12) and on using data to identify issues/needs and develop meaningful improvement activities.

Part C Coordinators, or their representative, from six states met in to share and problem solve.  Session leaders included a partnership between two Mid-South field staff and a NECTAC staff person. The session began with a discussion of General Supervision. This set the framework for all other discussions. Other key topics included: EC transition, child outcomes, family outcomes and timely services. Evaluations indicated session to be highly relevant and useful and showed increased understanding of the issues.

A 3-day regional meeting was conducted on dispute resolution APR Indicators 16, 17, 18, and 19. Approximately 30 state staff attended from 8 of our Region's 9 states. The agenda was organized by APR Indicator plus "upstream" early dispute resolution strategies. Staff from the Exceptional Child Assistance Center participated in a presentation on the involvement of PTIs in early dispute resolution. States requested and will participate in regular bi-monthly regional conference calls organized by Indicator.

Materials & Presentations:

Forum Agenda

Forum Minutes