October 11, 2011
HINGHAM SPECIAL EDUCATION PARENT ADVISORY COUNCIL (SEPAC)
Hingham Public Schools
Tuesday, October 11, 2011, 10:00 a.m.
Hingham Public Library, Fearing Room, 66 Leavitt St., Hingham, MA 02043
Meeting Agenda
Introduction and Rules
Acceptance of Minutes: September 21, 2011
Treasurer’s Report:
Communications:
· e-mail from Katie Hanley of Arc of the South Shore about special needs estate planning presentation 11/2 in Braintree
Questions & Comments:
· Audience comments are always welcome as agenda items are discussed. In addition, SEPAC has set aside ten (10) minutes on this agenda to enable members of the audience to raise questions and make comments on any matter of general concern. To facilitate this process, interested parties are asked to provide the Hingham SEPAC Chairpersons or the Hingham Public Schools Director of Student Services with the nature of the question/comment, in writing, prior to the start of the meeting.
Old Business:
· Update on SEPAC 2011-2012 calendar: SEPAC representation at upcoming PTO meetings (Foster Oct 26), South (Nov 16), and HMS (11/17); fundraising;
· Update on Fun Run for April 2012
New Business:
· SEPAC September newsletter mailing status & proposed date of next newsletter
· Review of procedures to communicate SEPAC meetings, presentations, etc.
· SEPAC banner
Subcommittee Reports:
· Report from Jean Garrity on All-town PTO meeting 9/23/11
HPS Director of Student Services Report:
Announcements & Adjournment:
· Upcoming SEPAC events:
October 13, 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m., Special Needs Financial Planning, HHS, Rm 103
October 19, 7:00 p.m. – 8:45 p.m., Parents’ Rights & Responsibilities, School Dept. Conference Rm, 220 Central St.
The provision of Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) according to federal and state laws and regulations related to the education of children with disabilities includes the following areas: Assessment of Students, Student Identification, Parent and Community Involvement, Curriculum and Instruction, Student Support Services, Faculty, Staff and Administration, School Facilities, Program Plan and Evaluation and Record Keeping.
Meeting Minutes
Present: Donna Keaney, Marisa Ronan, Kim Cross, Pam Berigan, Jean Garrity, and Dr. Jean Curtis Loud
Donna Keaney called the meeting to order at 10:10 a.m.
The minutes from September 21, 2011, were reviewed and accepted.
Treasurer: Kim reported the balance of the account is the same as last month ($11,594.42). Kim reimbursed Donna $64.70 for the cost of the two return address stamps and envelopes for the fall mailing. The Transition Grant check has not yet cleared. Also, Kim reported that she has e-mailed John Ferris in the business office about setting up a meeting to get the SEPAC account a municipally held account.
Communications: Donna shared some e-mail correspondence she has received. The ARC of the South Shore e-mailed her informing her of a presentation they will be having on November 2 on estate planning. Donna has received 12 RSVP’s to our Thursday night special needs financial planning program we will be hosting. Another e-mail Donna received was from Susan Martin resigning as co-chair of the Hingham SEPAC. There was also an e-mail from John and Liz at Goosefare Promotions regarding the antique show and possible SEPAC sponsorship.
Old Business:
SEPAC Calendar:
November 9th – Let’s Get Organized workshop. E-mails will be sent to each school for their newsletters with info about this program.
January 17, 2012 – Red Flags for Struggling Readers. Library is reserved for us for this presentation.
February 8, 2012 – Tracey Stoll, M.Ed., will be doing a presentation, with a snow date set for February 15, 2012.
March 7, 2012 – Dr. Moldover presentation to be held in the Whiton Room of the Hingham Public Library.
PTO Meetings – Kim will attend the Foster School PTO meeting on October 26to talk to parents about SEPAC. We still need to fill South PTO meeting and HMS.
SEPAC Fun Run: The proposed date is April 29, 2012. Jean and Pam will set a date to discuss more details about the proposed Fun Run. Jean will also be in touch with Bare Cove Park Committee to get on their agenda for their November meeting. It was suggested to check the baseball and First Communion dates so our date doesn’t interfere with those.
Fundraising: The proposed dates for a can/bottle drive at HMS are: Saturday, May 19, 2012, and Saturday, June 9, 2012. Pam to check at HHS to make sure there is no competition. Donna will draft an e-mail to John DeSimone of Goosefare Promotions regarding what our requirements are if we are consider sponsorship of the 25th annual Antique Show. She will share will board members before sending. Will speak with Nicole Hammers (Hingham Buddies) to see about their participation if we do sponsor the show (perhaps give an honorarium of $250).
New Business:
SEPAC Banner: Jean informed the officers that her neighbor has offered to make 2 SEPAC banners at no cost to us. One would be a table skirt sized banner and the other would be a smaller banner to hang on a podium when we have guest speakers. A discussion took place about what we wanted on our banner. Jean will contact her neighbor with the color and logo ideas.
SEPAC Mailing: It was decided that the next mailing should go out at the end of December to arrive in mailboxes early January 2012. All of the spring dates could be included on there. Our goal is to have the mailing done and ready to go to the post office during the week of December 26.
Review of Procedures to Communicate SEPAC business: Each person will contact the Hingham Journal to announce the presentation she has arranged. This topic will be further discussed at the next board meeting.
Director of Student Services Report: Dr. Loud reported that the curriculum is being updated to align with the newly adopted Common Core standards. A Special Town Meeting will take place on October 24 to vote on a proposed new middle school as well as improvements to the high school fields. On December 19, Dr. Galo will present the FY 2013 budget, and two weeks later the Special Education portion of the budget will be presented. Budget meetings are held every Thursday night in January. Parents are strongly encouraged to attend. It is most important that people attend the selectmen and advisory committee meeting dates.
Subcommittee Reports: Jean gave an update from the All Town PTO meeting. The next All Town PTO meeting will take place October 28, 2011.
Website: Marisa reported on traffic visiting website. Also, she has been busy updating the website to keep it current so people will be more inclined to continue to visit the site. Marisa also suggested having a SEPAC Facebook page. She will look into this more.
One other idea that was discussed was having a SEPAC booth downtown at Christmas in the Square. Marisa will find out more about what this would involve and report back at the next meeting.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:20 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Jean Garrity
HINGHAM SPECIAL EDUCATION PARENT ADVISORY COUNCIL (SEPAC)
Hingham Public Schools
Tuesday, October 11, 2011, 10:00 a.m.
Hingham Public Library, Fearing Room, 66 Leavitt St., Hingham, MA 02043
Meeting Agenda
Introduction and Rules
Acceptance of Minutes: September 21, 2011
Treasurer’s Report:
Communications:
· e-mail from Katie Hanley of Arc of the South Shore about special needs estate planning presentation 11/2 in Braintree
Questions & Comments:
· Audience comments are always welcome as agenda items are discussed. In addition, SEPAC has set aside ten (10) minutes on this agenda to enable members of the audience to raise questions and make comments on any matter of general concern. To facilitate this process, interested parties are asked to provide the Hingham SEPAC Chairpersons or the Hingham Public Schools Director of Student Services with the nature of the question/comment, in writing, prior to the start of the meeting.
Old Business:
· Update on SEPAC 2011-2012 calendar: SEPAC representation at upcoming PTO meetings (Foster Oct 26), South (Nov 16), and HMS (11/17); fundraising;
· Update on Fun Run for April 2012
New Business:
· SEPAC September newsletter mailing status & proposed date of next newsletter
· Review of procedures to communicate SEPAC meetings, presentations, etc.
· SEPAC banner
Subcommittee Reports:
· Report from Jean Garrity on All-town PTO meeting 9/23/11
HPS Director of Student Services Report:
Announcements & Adjournment:
· Upcoming SEPAC events:
October 13, 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m., Special Needs Financial Planning, HHS, Rm 103
October 19, 7:00 p.m. – 8:45 p.m., Parents’ Rights & Responsibilities, School Dept. Conference Rm, 220 Central St.
The provision of Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) according to federal and state laws and regulations related to the education of children with disabilities includes the following areas: Assessment of Students, Student Identification, Parent and Community Involvement, Curriculum and Instruction, Student Support Services, Faculty, Staff and Administration, School Facilities, Program Plan and Evaluation and Record Keeping.
Meeting Minutes
Present: Donna Keaney, Marisa Ronan, Kim Cross, Pam Berigan, Jean Garrity, and Dr. Jean Curtis Loud
Donna Keaney called the meeting to order at 10:10 a.m.
The minutes from September 21, 2011, were reviewed and accepted.
Treasurer: Kim reported the balance of the account is the same as last month ($11,594.42). Kim reimbursed Donna $64.70 for the cost of the two return address stamps and envelopes for the fall mailing. The Transition Grant check has not yet cleared. Also, Kim reported that she has e-mailed John Ferris in the business office about setting up a meeting to get the SEPAC account a municipally held account.
Communications: Donna shared some e-mail correspondence she has received. The ARC of the South Shore e-mailed her informing her of a presentation they will be having on November 2 on estate planning. Donna has received 12 RSVP’s to our Thursday night special needs financial planning program we will be hosting. Another e-mail Donna received was from Susan Martin resigning as co-chair of the Hingham SEPAC. There was also an e-mail from John and Liz at Goosefare Promotions regarding the antique show and possible SEPAC sponsorship.
Old Business:
SEPAC Calendar:
November 9th – Let’s Get Organized workshop. E-mails will be sent to each school for their newsletters with info about this program.
January 17, 2012 – Red Flags for Struggling Readers. Library is reserved for us for this presentation.
February 8, 2012 – Tracey Stoll, M.Ed., will be doing a presentation, with a snow date set for February 15, 2012.
March 7, 2012 – Dr. Moldover presentation to be held in the Whiton Room of the Hingham Public Library.
PTO Meetings – Kim will attend the Foster School PTO meeting on October 26to talk to parents about SEPAC. We still need to fill South PTO meeting and HMS.
SEPAC Fun Run: The proposed date is April 29, 2012. Jean and Pam will set a date to discuss more details about the proposed Fun Run. Jean will also be in touch with Bare Cove Park Committee to get on their agenda for their November meeting. It was suggested to check the baseball and First Communion dates so our date doesn’t interfere with those.
Fundraising: The proposed dates for a can/bottle drive at HMS are: Saturday, May 19, 2012, and Saturday, June 9, 2012. Pam to check at HHS to make sure there is no competition. Donna will draft an e-mail to John DeSimone of Goosefare Promotions regarding what our requirements are if we are consider sponsorship of the 25th annual Antique Show. She will share will board members before sending. Will speak with Nicole Hammers (Hingham Buddies) to see about their participation if we do sponsor the show (perhaps give an honorarium of $250).
New Business:
SEPAC Banner: Jean informed the officers that her neighbor has offered to make 2 SEPAC banners at no cost to us. One would be a table skirt sized banner and the other would be a smaller banner to hang on a podium when we have guest speakers. A discussion took place about what we wanted on our banner. Jean will contact her neighbor with the color and logo ideas.
SEPAC Mailing: It was decided that the next mailing should go out at the end of December to arrive in mailboxes early January 2012. All of the spring dates could be included on there. Our goal is to have the mailing done and ready to go to the post office during the week of December 26.
Review of Procedures to Communicate SEPAC business: Each person will contact the Hingham Journal to announce the presentation she has arranged. This topic will be further discussed at the next board meeting.
Director of Student Services Report: Dr. Loud reported that the curriculum is being updated to align with the newly adopted Common Core standards. A Special Town Meeting will take place on October 24 to vote on a proposed new middle school as well as improvements to the high school fields. On December 19, Dr. Galo will present the FY 2013 budget, and two weeks later the Special Education portion of the budget will be presented. Budget meetings are held every Thursday night in January. Parents are strongly encouraged to attend. It is most important that people attend the selectmen and advisory committee meeting dates.
Subcommittee Reports: Jean gave an update from the All Town PTO meeting. The next All Town PTO meeting will take place October 28, 2011.
Website: Marisa reported on traffic visiting website. Also, she has been busy updating the website to keep it current so people will be more inclined to continue to visit the site. Marisa also suggested having a SEPAC Facebook page. She will look into this more.
One other idea that was discussed was having a SEPAC booth downtown at Christmas in the Square. Marisa will find out more about what this would involve and report back at the next meeting.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:20 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Jean Garrity
