The Family Resource Group
Happy New Year!
We hope you had a wonderful holiday season. 2024 is a year of opportunities. We hope you and your child see success in their learning. It's hard to believe it is time to start planning for summer camps. Take advantage of the information in this edition of the newsletter. Enjoy the resources! If you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at any time. To be sure that you continue to receive all future updates, or information, directly to your email address, sign up on the Family Resource Group mailing list.
Erin Campion
Family Resource Group Editor
Now Accepting Student Applications!
- at Penn State’s University Park campus in State College, PA
- Sunday, July 14th to Wednesday, July 24th, 2024
- for deaf, hard of hearing, and deafblind high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors who are interested in either enrolling in a post-secondary education institute of any kind, or going directly into the workforce after graduating from high school
- accepted participants need to either have an open case with the PA Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR) or are willing to be referred to OVR to have a case opened with them
- students will receive instruction from each of the five topic areas:
- Assistive Technology
- Audiology
- Vocational Development
- Social-Emotional Skills
- Independent Living Skills
- participants will be given a college dorm room and a roommate within their age range
- no cost to participate in this program. The program is fully funded by the PA Department of Labor and Industry’s Office of Vocational Rehabilitation.
For more information about the program and to have students apply for the program, go to: 2024 DHH Summer Academy Student Application Link or contact:
Russ Goddard, MRC, CRC | Program Director, Deaf and Hard of Hearing Summer Academy
Phone: 724-936-5076 | VP: 717.831.0336 | Fax: 724.656.3265 | TTY: 724.656.3252
E-Mail: rgoddard@pa.gov Office Hours: 8:30am to 4:30pm www.dli.pa.gov/ovr
Deaf and hard-of-hearing college bound students: Are you wondering what you will do after you graduate from high school? Explore Your Future (EYF) is a six-day career exploration program at Rochester Institute of Technology for college-bound deaf and hard-of-hearing high school students who will begin their junior or senior year in fall 2023. This program focuses on personal growth and career awareness for students as they begin to think about college.
Students who attend EYF who enroll at RIT/NTID for college will receive a $1,000 scholarship and an application fee waiver to apply to RIT at no cost. Join us for EYF Explore Your Future this year!
Session I: July 6-11, 2024 Session II: July 13-18, 2024 Apply now!
RIT Information Session
Deaf and hard-of-hearing students and their parents/guardians are invited to attend a free RIT Information Session. Join Rick Postl, Director of RIT/NTID Admissions, RIT alumnus, and parent of an RIT student, and Charles McFadden, Senior Director of the RIT/NTID Outreach Consortium, and RIT alumnus, to learn about RIT’s academic, social, and personal development opportunities for deaf and hard-of-hearing students, which are unmatched by any other university in the world. RIT is creating the most powerful, successful network of deaf and hard-of-hearing professionals in the world. Join us to learn more about how your student can become part of this community of doers, thinkers, and makers!
When: Saturday, January 20, 2024 Where: Abington Art Center 515 Meetinghouse Road Jenkintown, PA 19046 Time: 10:00 – 11:30 a.m.
Register. A light breakfast will be provided. Guests may also visit the winter art exhibition and outdoor sculpture garden at the venue. An ASL interpreter will be present to facilitate communication for all. Questions? Contact us by phone at 585-475-6700 or toll free 866-644-6843 (Voice/VRS), 585-743-1366 (VP), or by email at NTIDAdmissions@rit.edu
February 28 - March 1, 2024 | Hershey, PA
Registration is now open for the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE), Bureau of Special Education's signature event. This annual statewide conference offers an opportunity to learn and engage with nationally recognized presenters, as well as families and educators from across the state, highlighting effective instructional strategies and interventions designed to make an educational difference for all students.
Conference registration will close at 4:00pm on Friday, February 13, 2024.
The Pennsylvania Bureau of Special Education and PaTTAN are pleased to offer parent scholarships to Pennsylvania residents who have school-age children with a current IEP.
- There are a limited number of scholarships for Pennsylvania parents to attend the conference in person.
- There are an unlimited number of scholarships for Pennsylvania parents who plan to attend virtually.
- Parent scholarships cover the cost of the conference registration (in-person or virtual).
- For those approved to attend in-person who are traveling 50 miles or more, a scholarship may cover the cost of lodging.
Prior to completing this application, you will need to:
~ REGISTER FOR THE PDE CONFERENCE
- Please note: Our system now accepts online payments. However, payment is not required to register when applying for scholarship. Please select CHECK as your payment type and insert PARENT SCHOLARSHIP as the check number.
~ SUBMIT COMPLETED APPLICATION by January 20, 2024, 4:00 p.m.
If you need assistance completing this application or have any questions, email parentscholarship@pattan.net or call 800-441-3215.
Save the Date for Family Learning Conference 2024 - Details to follow in the coming months. Please share!
If your child has both a vision and hearing loss, your family (parents/guardians, siblings and child who is deafblind) is welcome to join us for our hybrid family learning conference June 21-22 at The Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center, State College, PA.
PLEASE SHARE THIS SURVEY WITH ANYONE WHO HAS A CHILD IN SPECIAL EDUCATION!!
*Please find links below for the survey in English and Spanish*
This survey is intended to gather information about TWO AREAS:
- What families experience during the TRANSITION from Early Intervention to School-Age
- How both pre-school programs and K-Graduation school-age schools are engaging families
Your answers can help us improve transitions for children receiving special education services and inform educational agencies about how to ENGAGE FAMILIES!
If you have a child 5 - 8 years old, you will answer a series of 10 questions. If you have a child in Early Intervention or 9 years old through graduation, you will answer 5 questions.
Family Engagement Survey-SPEL English (Formsite.com)
Gracias por tomar esta encuesta. Queremos aprender sobre la transición de su niño de los servicios de intervención temprana (EI, por sus siglas en inglés) a un entorno de edad escolar. Sus respuestas nos ayudaran a mejorar la transición para los niños que reciben servicios de educación especial.