Dear Special Education Directors,
The Kentucky Peer Support/Network Project announces a revised training schedule for school teams at locations throughout the state this Fall, as listed below. School teams will learn about setting up Peer Supports (in inclusive classrooms) and Peer Networks (outside the classroom) for students with significant disabilities. The intent of the project is to expand learning and participation in inclusive activities — across classroom and extracurricular settings — for students with significant disabilities, while laying the foundation for genuine friendships between students with and without disabilities
The Kentucky Peer Support/Network Project is entering its third year. We held trainings throughout the state in 2014 and trained approximately 80 school teams. From those teams, 10 Pilot Site schools were chosen, and we are following their implementation in order to support them and find out what strategies work best. We have seen great things in our Pilot Site schools! Since we want more students in Kentucky to have opportunities for relationships, participation, and true inclusion in both school and extracurricular activities, we are offering trainings this fall, in conjunction with our Pilot Site schools and Low Incidence Coordinators, at sites around the state as follows:
- Thursday, August 27 – Eddyville (West KY Coop) – registration due Thursday August 20th
- Wednesday, September 2 – Lexington (Central KY and Ohio Valley Coops) – registration due Wednesday August 26th
- Friday, September 4 – Corbin (KY Valley and Southeast/Southcentral Coops) –registration due Friday August 28th
- Thursday, September 17 – Bowling Green (Green River Coop) – registration due Thursday Sept. 10
- Friday, September 25 – Maysville (Northern KY and Big East Coops) – registration due Friday Sept. 18th
There is no cost to attend, and administrators are eligible for 5 hours of EILA credit for participating. Each training is held from 9 AM to 3 PM, with lunch included.
School Teams Will Leave With:
- The Building Blocks for Establishing Friendships
- Classroom and School-Based Strategies/Examples for Building Peer Supports and Networks
- Steps for Implementing Peer Supports and Networks
- A Variety Of Tools and Resources Ready-To-Use for the Development of Peer Supports and Networks
- Overview of Evaluation Tools and Indicators for Successful Peer Supports and Networks
- An Action Plan to Implement Peer Supports and Peer Networks in Their Own School.
Please find attached the registration form for the trainings. Schools are encouraged to send a team including a special education teacher, general education teacher, and administrator; parents, paraprofessionals and related service professionals are all encouraged to attend as well. Registration forms (attached) can be emailed directly to Katie Hastings at kaha222@uky.edu. For more information, please visit our project website: www.kypeersupport.org.
Sincerely,
KY Peer Support Network Project Staff
