We have another conference prize winner, William C. Soltys of Lyons Township High School in LaGrange, Illinois has chosen the $50 gift certificate to Black Eyed Sallys Restaurant to use during the conference. Congratulations William! I asked William to tell us a little about himself: I am in my 7th year as a Para-educator at … Read more
More than 40 instructional aides from schools across Henrico County attended last night’s public hearing on the district’s proposed 2008-09 budget. Their message was clear: Instructional aides should make at least half the salary of teachers. One parent from the school district understands the importance of paraprofessionals: Caroline Nelson, a Henrico parent, called these workers … Read more
If you have been thinking about attending the upcoming National Conference, but are not quite sure what to expect, take a moment to look through a few pictures that were taken at last years conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico or a from the year before in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Doesn’t that look like fun? What are … Read more
Sara Doege is our second conference prize winner and she has chosen the $50 gift certificate to Mayor Mike’s in Hartford. We asked Sara to tell us a little about herself: I am currently working with students with cognitive disabilities at Slinger High School in Wisconsin. I am also currently enrolled at Moraine Park Technical … Read more
The schedule for the upcoming conference has been released with 68 sessions covering a wide range of topics, including: Understanding Your Student With Autism Spectrum Disorders from Cindy Myers Establishing Policies and Creating Systems That Strengthen Teacher and Paraeducator Teams from Anna Lou Pickett Living Wage: You’re Worth It! from Debbie Minnick Degree of Work … Read more
Danielle Delaney has taken the time to post a 7 minute video on Youtube about some of the work that she does as a paraprofessional:
Sue Watson, from the About.com Special Education page has created a list of 10 questions to ask yourself before you decide to pursue a career as a special educator. Looking over the list, I think it applies equally to paraeducators. Here is one of the question she asks: 3. Do you have endless patience? I … Read more
The first winner of one of our early registration contest rewards is Mary McKenna- she has chosen the $50 gift certificate to Hot Tomato’s. We asked Mary to tell us a little about herself: I have worked as a para with children with varying levels of special needs in grades ranging from Pre-K to Second. … Read more
We have selected the winner of one of our fabulous conference prizes. We will notify the winner tomorrow and then post the person’s name along with his or her prize. There will still be some great prizes given away, so hurry and register before we choose the next winner- don’t forget that everyone who registers … Read more
Kari is a “woman given the awesome task of raising 6 children, 2 of them with special needs”. Her blog includes personal and insightful insights on raising her children and living life. Today’s post includes an experience with her son Ben initiated by Ben’s paraprofessional: I answered the phone and Ben’s 1:1 paraprofessional told me … Read more