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STAFF HIGHLIGHT

9/29/2016

Name: Veronica Coe
Position: Student Support Assistant (SSA), Epic

I am a Student Support Assistant at EPIC where I mostly work with the 6th graders. I have worked for Seneca for a year and a half, but just started in this role. I worked for Building Blocks previously, which I loved! The littles have my heart, but I was looking to work with older children to gain more experience for grad school. I am applying to the Child Life Specialist program to work creating a therapeutic, fun environment in a hospital. A fun fact is that I tap danced for 14 years! My average day is a combination providing behavioral and socioemotional support to students, supporting teachers in classroom management, running homework club and much more! I've always loved working with kids, and am so happy that I can support kids with whatever they need in an academic setting. Although I am new to All-In, my hope is that the Unconditional Education model continues to improve the daily lives and skills of both students, teachers, and providers.

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BEHAVIORAL STRAND UPDATE: Desegregation in Schools: How Can We Have an Effect on Change?

9/28/2016

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In the midst of all schools trying to cut the achievement gap by half, we often forget what it takes to do this work. A podcast from This American Life, titled “The Problem We All Live With”, includes an interesting discussion about the achievement gap and the desegregation that happens when trying give access to students of color so that everyone is on the same leveling playing field.

“Racial segregation has come back to public education with a vengeance.” - Jonathan Kozol

After listening to this podcast, I hope it has evoked some type of feeling around this topic and are willing to share. What are your thoughts? Leave a comment to start the conversation about desegregation in your life and in our schools.

Blog post written by:
Darrell Burns, Assistant Director of Behavioral Intervention

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STAFF HIGHLIGHT

9/21/2016

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Name: Stacey Abram
Position: Academic Intervention Specialist

What led you to your current position?
I began my career with Seneca in 2002 as a Residential Counselor. Since then I’ve been a classroom teacher, assistant director, floater teacher and I’ve been in my current role as an AIS since 2012.

Quote:
“I'm not saying I'm gonna change the world, but I guarantee that I will spark the brain that will change the world.”
-Tupac Amaru Shakur

What does your average day look like?
Right now as an AIS at ARISE High School I push into classes to provide support to students with IEPs in the general education setting. This is the first time I have my own office hours, so I am also able to help students on specific skills related to their IEP goals and with whatever subjects they need additional support in.

Why do you do this work?
I believe that as Nelson Mandela said “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” As an educator it is my job to equip students with the skills and knowledge to thrive in a challenging world.

What hope do you have for the future of All-In?
I hope that the All-In Unconditional Education model continues to be implemented in more schools throughout the nation! As an inclusion minded educator, my ultimate dream is for Seneca Family of Agencies to open its own network of schools in which we would serve all students in a community regardless of ability or diagnosis. Schools that provide the traditional functions as well as implementation of the Unconditional Education RTI model!!!

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SPECIAL EDUCATION AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

9/21/2016

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Since orientation, I've been reflecting on several aspects of partnership. Seeing the fabulous work that is being done at all of our sites across the program, I'm reminded how closely our partnership work is linked with the values of our agency as well as my own personal values. Providing ethical and high quality special education services is closely tied to issues of social justice. For too long, individuals and groups of people have systematically been denied equal access to various aspects of society, including education.

Below, I have posted a few links (with intro blurbs below the link) to articles which demonstrate the value of perseverance, when addressing issues of equity in education. Yes, the work you do is challenging. Yes, you may experience barriers and roadblocks. BUT YES – the work you do matters! You touch the lives of students and their families every day in seen and unseen ways. What moves you to persevere in dismantling structural barriers to equity?

Civil Rights Fight, Dorene Philpot
So, even though the fight to enforce these rights is discouraging, disheartening and definitely not the path of least resistance, this is the path to effecting change in our society and winning the war, just as the civil rights activists did to get slavery abolished, women the right to vote, and disabled children the right to attend school.

Don’t give up – your efforts are important. In fact, without a continued, concerted fight, change cannot and will not occur.

Take heart in the knowledge that the fights you fight now, even though you do not win, get us one day closer to the time when our society will say, “Really? You mean you had to fight for that? Seems like a no-brainer to me.”

Civil Rights in Education, A2Z Educational Advocates
The right to equal educational opportunity and access has come a long way since 1954 for the groups of persons who have historically been denied that access. Unfortunately, on a daily basis I am reminded how far we still have to go as a society to reach the point where exclusion, discrimination, and the denial of meaningful educational benefit, be it on the basis of race, disability, or poverty, no longer exists in our schools. Only when we eliminate discrimination in schools and ensure truly equal access to a meaningful education will society as a whole move towards greater inclusion of all persons..

Encouraging Active Parent Participation in IEP Meetings, Diane Marie Dabkowski
The cultural context through which both parents and professionals form their personal value systems contributes to their ability to make joint decisions. An understanding of the team process, including the role of participants’ cultural background, can influence the effectiveness of IEP teams (see box, “What Does the Literature Say About Parent Participation.”)

Blog post written by:
Celina Zins, Director of School Partnerships

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STAFF HIGHLIGHT

9/14/2016

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This year we're trying a few new things with the blog. One of the new additions is a weekly highlight of an All-In! staff member who will be selected by the leadership team. Get ready – you just might be next!

Name: MK Morrison
Position: i3 Associate Project Manager

What led you to your current position?
I studied Child Development in undergrad and worked as an assistant teacher in an early childhood education center. After graduating I wanted to try out the administrative side, and joined Seneca in 2011 as a Program/Case Assistant for Barack Obama Academy (BOA). When BOA joined the Oakland Public School program (OPS), my role changed to Senior Case Assistant for both BOA and OPS. During this time, Robin Detterman (who I had worked with at BOA) reached out to me about joining the i3 team within All-In!, and it was an opportunity I was really excited about.

Fun Fact:
I have two rescue dogs (Mogli and Frankie) and am involved with a few different local animal rescue organizations.

What does your average day look like?
On any given day you’ll find me working at Rock on projects related to implementing, evaluating, and/or communicating about the UE model. Some of my recent projects have been putting together our first e-newsletter version of UE’s “Inside Innovation” newsletter, getting a baseline SCAI assessment going at some of our new partnership schools, and getting this blog up and running again.

Why do you do this work?
I do this work because I believe every child should have access to high-quality education, and I love being to support that.

What hope do you have for the future of All-In?
My hope is that All-In!/UE will continue to grow and expand so that we can impact even more children, families, schools, and communities.

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BACK TO SCHOOL NEWS ROUND-UP: RACE, EQUITY AND EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY

9/14/2016

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Welcome Back! As we launch into the new school year I am excited to kick-off our 2016-17 blog! We hope that this space provides you – our staff, school partners, and broader community – a space to read about important issues related to the work of making schools more inclusive places for all students. The back-to-school season brings new media attention to education and this fall has been no exception. Here’s a few of the many pieces that I’ve run across with relevance to Unconditional Education, and in particular how issues of racial equity are at the center of our work for educational opportunity.

Race and socio-economic status have long played an important role in determining school assignment and thus equitable access to educational opportunity. A recent series by KQED reporter Zaidee Stavely explores the issues of race, poverty, gentrification, and school diversity in Oakland’s public schools. KQED followed up with an intriguing interview by Oakland’s Superintendent Antwan Wilson delving into the complexities of school diversity.

Restorative discipline practices are gaining momentum across the country and it’s exciting to see coverage of such extend to major new outlets. Last week’s New York Times feature “An Effective Yet Exhausting Alternative to High School Suspensions” details how RJ practices have played out in one New York high school and the Washington Post highlighted similar practices in D.C. Alternately, Education Week published this exploration of the use of corporal punishment in schools, which perhaps not surprisingly reports that the students who qualify for free and reduced lunch and Black students are far more likely to attend schools that utilize corporal punishment than their peers.

This summer has brought a new wave of shootings of black men and with it a further confirmation of the ways racial inequities play out daily in our communities. Many of us wonder how to best explore these incidents with our students and/or how to talk about the larger issues of social justice. This article in the Atlantic explores a new study on “The Long Term Effects of Social Justice Education on Black Students” provides confirmation on why doing so can be a powerful tool. To support these conversations the organization Teaching Tolerance has compiled a selection of lessons and resources for teaching about race, racism and police violence.

What have you been reading? Don’t forget, you can add your own comments and links to this and other posts. Simply click the “Comments” line below to share your own links, resources, or comments on the content you read here.

Blog post written by:
Robin Detterman, Executive Director of School Partnerships

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Welcome

STAFF HIGHLIGHT

BEHAVIORAL STRAND UPDATE: Desegregation in Schools: How Can We Have an Effect on Change?

STAFF HIGHLIGHT

SPECIAL EDUCATION AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

STAFF HIGHLIGHT

BACK TO SCHOOL NEWS ROUND-UP: RACE, EQUITY AND EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY

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