February 4, 2021 SEPAG Meeting

Minutes taken by Lisa Walter

7:00-8:00

Special Presentation:

Self-Compassion and Compassion Fatigue: A workshop for parents of children with special needs

Presented by: Mary Cunningham, LPC; CWC Student Assistance Counselor Lauryn Tuchman, LCSW; Clinical Director of The Bridge, Inc. The presenters discussed having healthy vs. stealthy (underlying “shoulds”) expectations during this time of “extended crisis”; the presenters led participants in some relaxation exercises and discussed ways that we can recognize our own signs of fatigue and stress and thereby support our children as they move through this time.

8:00-8:30

Business Meeting

Dr. Christopher Conklin = New superintendent, starting July 1, 2021

SEPAG will reach out and invite him to our March meeting.

Home and School League is re-forming; the committee will meet 4x a year with representatives from each school’s HSA; Julianne Grosso also requested that the SEPAG be represented at these meetings.

The SEPAG would like to develop parent cohorts to address different areas of focus

These cohorts would meet and work with the Special Education department

Some possible cohorts might include: Dyslexia, Autism, ADHD

A cohort could arrange for a speaker at a monthly meeting; this would be informative and helpful to parents and lead to developing a list of Best Practices for the school district

March or April focus will be dyslexia. Lisa Walter and Jessica Wilson will look into possible speakers for the meeting.

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Meeting adjourned @ 8:50.