WESTFIELD – The Westfield Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC) held its fall kickoff on Thursday with speaker Dr. Adam Garand, administrator of special services for Westfield Public Schools, who shared his vision for special education in the district moving forward.
The meeting, which was scheduled for the South Middle School library, was moved to the cafeteria due to a conflict. Melissa Rutkowski, one of the parent coordinators of SEPAC, welcomed the dozen or so parents and educators in the room, explaining that SEPAC was active in trying to make things better for them and their children.
Rutkowski introduced Garand, who said due to the room change he was unable to show the presentation he had planned, but was happy to meet with the group.
“The Parent Advisory Council is a critical component to any district,” Garand said, noting that he has already met with the group several times since he started July 1. “It’s been really great,” he said about his first few months in the position.
Dr. Adam Garand (L) speaks with parents at the SEPAC meeting on Thursday. (Photo by Amy Porter)
He said that his sense of how to go about educating students – all students, is to use a team approach. “Every educator has a specialty. When they work in isolation, children don’t benefit,” he said.
He said special education teachers have a specialty also, which is in understanding strategies and methodologies. Garand said he also believes in the tools approach. For a child who is not able to learn effectively, what tool can be used to help circumvent a disability.
“(Schools) compartmentalize these kids by what they can’t do. We need to be experts at designing skill opportunities for kids,” he said, adding that the educators and administrators in Westfield want to be really good at this.
“We want to prepare students when they leave public schools to be really independent people in the community,” he said.
Garand talked about the emerging design in education called Universal Design for Learning, which has already been adopted in the district with the slogan “Excellence by Design.”
He said the team approach focuses on the regular classroom, “the space where the magic happens.” This involves asking educators to reconceptualize themselves as learning designers for kids, not pushing information on kids.
“I think there needs to be a shift in the way we think about education,” he explained, shifting the focus from instruction to learning, which depends on the educational experience of the child.
“The real world isn’t information regurgitation. We want to shift focus on learning,” Garand said.
One aspect of the team approach is to design an educational space that allows all kids to learn. Garand said that schools are not good at using the technology they already have. For example, he said for lower level readers in a regular education class such as science, there is software that can take any text and level it down to the student’s level.
He said in order to design the classrooms for all students, assistive technology specialists are needed.
“I think we’re on the cusp as a district. I want educators to solve learning problems for kids,” Garand said. He said in this big picture, their team is missing the assistive technician, who could help give every child the ability to use a tool that fits their learning style, and the support to be an independent learner.
“Let’s design classrooms and provide tools. We’re missing that key role,” Garand said, “I would love to see a classroom… where kids are learning in ways that suit them.”
Garand said that all of these ideas have been discussed at the Central Office, which he called a “good team.” He said in his first 2 ½ months on the job, they are already taking “baby steps” in that direction. He said the district plans to pilot having some of their therapists work with regular teachers, to help the teachers to identify impediments to learning.
“We now know there are all sorts of resources we want to pull in,” Garand said.
Shifting his focus to the SEPAC, Garand called the group a necessary voice in the conversation of how the City of Westfield uses its resources.
Rutkowski said the group represents 1,000 students in Westfield Public Schools. She agreed that professional development for regular teachers is key.
“Your talk is wonderful and I think it’s up there. We’re down in the trenches. How can we take your vision and use it?” Rutkowski said.
Michele Douglas and Felicita Cintron of SEPAC share information with a parent at the kickoff meeting on Thursday. (Photo by Amy Porter)
“I want to be able to work together and be open and honest. You bring a perspective and I bring a perspective,” Garand replied. “I absolutely want to have your voice and sense of what’s best when decisions get made,” he added.
He said the district and SEPAC have a common denomination to work in the best interest of educating kids. “That’s the glue that binds us together,” Garand said.
All families with a child on an IEP (Individualized Education Plan) or with a 504 plan are members of SEPAC, which meets on the first Thursday of every month in the library of South Middle School at 30 West Silver Street from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Meetings range from workshops to roundtables, to the annual awards ceremony. Refreshments and childcare are always provided.
The next SEPAC meeting, which will be a Special Services round robin event, is scheduled for Thursday, October 6. For more information, go to the SEPAC page on the city website at www.cityofwestfield.org, email [email protected] or join SEPAC’s Facebook group at: Westfield MA Special Education Parent Advisory Council.
