Autism

On Friday you should have received a flyer inviting you to an Early Childhood Autism Workshop in August. Please consider attending both days!

In April,our department met to discuss assignments for next year; Deb Bennett suggested that the agency provide professional development that was early childhood focused! Theresa Golden listened to "the voice" and asked me to bring in Dr. Thomas Higbee, Utah State University. Several staff from the Spencer office heard his autism presentation in Sioux Falls, South Dakota and were impressed! I went to Jerry Stremel, our department liasion and he was very supportive as well.

I understand that the timing, August 16 & 17, our first contract days, may not be ideal. Since ECSE district teachers are invited, we needed a date that was before they were back in the classroom. And the presenter needed a date prior to Aug. 30 when he is back in the classroom as well. It's not easy, coordinating a location, a date, and all the details it takes to bring in a national speaker.

Celebrate Diversity Conference

On Saturday, August 21 in Des Moines, Eight breakout sessions will explore culturally
competent teacher practices and strategies addressing a variety of issues in the area of race,diversity and early childhood. Flyer attached!

Challenging Behaviors

There are 2 excellent "free" training opportunities occurring in June that you may want to consider.The first training is in Ames on June 18 and is sponsored by the State Learning supports Team. Dr. Glen Dunlap, Child and Family Studies professor at the University of South Florida, will present “The Most Challenging Behaviors: Functional Assessment and Positive Behavior Support for Young Children.” Includes an overview of intensive, individualized interventions for children with serious challenging behaviors and the development and implementation of behavior support plans.
Intended Audience: Early childhood, lower elementary, mental health and support staff. Registration information is attached.

The second training is being held on June 25 in Ft. Dodge and is sponsored by Linking Families and Communities Empowerment. Jennifer Robers Miller. M.S. LPC presentation is "Dealing with Children with Challenging Behaviors." Registration information is attached.

vision

There have been some questions about the use of the MTI photoscreener camera and the referral process for vision and hearing. We have developed a checklist of the responsibilities of the service coordinator, audiologist,and vision specialist that will be shared with their department in May. Since we don't have another department meeting, you are responsible to read the information and ask questions to clarify the process.

I met with the vision department last week and Mary and Jean gave me their cell phone number(see attachment). If referrals come in during the summer and you need their assistance, they have asked that you call their cell phone and email them in order to ensure the timeliness of birth to three evaluations and services. The audiology department meets later this month and a similar process will be put in place for reaching them during the summer.

I have also attached a list of Infantsee Doctors and a Birth to 3 and 3 to 5 vision checklist that may assist you with local resources.

3-5 referrals

Why do so many 3-5 referrals come during the month of May? And will referrals continue to come during June, July, and August?

As you recall, the agency sent out a memo that FIE's should not be signed after April 1, in order to ensure completion of the eligibility process prior to staff leaving for the summer.

This process leaves a "gap" in services for young children. If a child is referred in May, it is likely that no services will occur before September. That is 4-5 months of "waiting."

I will continue to forward the referrals that are submitted to our agency. I would ask that you contact the parents, mail an ASQ or complete it over the phone. Please discuss the importance of the child attending a preschool in the fall and help make appropriate contacts to a district or Head Start placement. In some cases, it may be appropriate to refer to Child Health Specialty Clinic in Ft.Dodge, Spencer, or Mason City.

Recently I attended a meeting in Ft. Dodge and was informed that Catholic Social Services provides "trauma cognitive behavior therapy" to little ones. Private insurance and medicaid are billed for services.

Berry Hill, Center for Mental Health in Ft. Dodge has recently hired 2 therapist for "parent child interaction therapy." Within the next couple of months they will be taking appointments for young children as well.

Summer is a time when you must know your community resources!

Research to Practice: Early Intervention in Natural Environments

Thank you for submitting the ISU IFSP pilot information in a timely manner! The forms have been sent to the DE. Gale and I will randomly pull 5 IFSP outcomes written between the dates of May 1 and June 30 and submit them to the pilot project. This will be a way for them to measure progress on the components of a quality IFSP outcome based on the training information.

I have lots of paperwork to go through with ECO, RBI, article reviews, etc. etc. If I am missing anything, I will contact you. Grades will be submitted and available later this month.

Is there anyone that would like to participate in a grant proposal with Dr. Robin McWilliam and the Institute of Education Science and the U.S. Dept. of Education??? This is a 4 year commitment, beginning in March 2011. There will be stipends and training available for 10 service coordinators from Iowa! I can send you more information if you are interested and plan to work for the AEA for at least 5 more years!!! Contact me ASAP if interested!