Conejo Oaks Academy Families and Community Members:

Welcome back! We hope you had a joyful and restful holiday break filled with time spent with loved ones and cherished memories. As we begin 2025, we’re excited to dive into the upcoming months filled with learning, growth, and plenty of opportunities to celebrate our school community. I'm looking forward to working together to make the rest of this school year as productive and inspiring as possible.

In this month's newsletter you will find information on the following:

• Unique Curriculum (Topic of February's Coffee with the Coordinator)
• General Program information and last month's newsletter

The next Coffee with the Coordinator will be tomorrow, January 29th from 12:30-1:30pm in the Conejo Adult Education Multi-Purpose Room. Peter Aguirre, from Ventura County SELPA, will be sharing information about Parent Engagement in the IEP Process. I will take notes and/or share materials provided for anyone who does not have the opportunity to attend.

Take Care,

Amanda Glover MS.Ed.

If you have any questions, concerns, and/or compliments for our program, you can always reach me at aglover@conejousd.org or at 805-660-5262.

• January 29- Coffee with the Coordinator (12:30pm in the Adult Ed. MPR)
• February 4 - Special Education District Advisory Council (9:15am-11:15am Be Me Preschool)
• February 12- Coffee with the Coordinator (12:30pm in the Adult Ed. MPR)
• February 14 and 17- Presidents' Day Holiday (No School)
• February 20- COA Minimum Day (8:00am-12:30pm)
• March 17-Professional Learning Day (No School)

CVUSD has adopted the Unique Learning System curriculum to support students in specialized programs.

Unique Learning System (ULS) transition bands are designed to support students with disabilities as they move through different stages of learning and life preparation. These bands—Early Childhood, Elementary, Intermediate, Middle School, High School, and Transition—are tailored to align with developmental needs and educational goals.

The Transition Band specifically focuses on helping students aged 18-22 prepare for life after school, emphasizing independence, vocational skills, community involvement, and self-advocacy. This band includes practical lessons and real-world applications to help students navigate adult responsibilities and opportunities. Each band builds on prior knowledge while addressing age-appropriate skills to ensure students are set up for long-term success.

**Sara Cummings, our Inclusion Teacher on Special Assignment, will be digging deeper into all that the Unique Transition Band has to offer for our with students and families for February's Coffee with the Coordinator on Wednesday, February 12th from 12:30pm-1:30pm in the Adult Ed. MPR. **

We enjoy having guests at COA. To ensure the safety of our student's we ask that all visitors/volunteers check-in and receive badges prior to coming on to school campuses. Our comprehensive campuses have the equipment needed to print badges in the front office. Since Conejo Oaks Academy does not have a front office on site, we ask that people visiting our program first check in at the District Educational Center (DEC) before coming to our campus. The DEC is located at 1400 Janss Road. Please contact your Coordinator, Mandi Glover, if you have any questions and to arrange a visit.

Please reach out to Mandi Glover if you would like to arrange a time to review the site safety plan or have any other questions about site safety.

We will be practicing safety drills throughout the school year. See the schedule below. More information will follow in future newsletters and from your student and/or teacher.

Safety Drills Schedule

• Fire Drills-September/January
• Earthquake Drills-October/February
• Intruder Drills-November/March

• Occupational Therapist- Rachel Yashouafar
• Psychologist- Shannon Higgoda
• Adapted PE Teacher- Victoria Alvarez
• Deaf and Hard of Hearing Teacher- Karen Mestre
• Speech Pathologist- Jennie McIntosh
• Board Certified Behavior Analyst- Karli Karamanlian
• Nurse- Jill Chen

• VCOE Transition to adult life resources: https://www.vcselpa.org/For-Families/Transition-to-Adult-Life
• Tri-Counties information/link: https://www.tri-counties.org/
  
• Department of Rehabilitation information/link: www.dor.ca.gov

Email: aglover@conejousd.org
Website: https://www.conejousd.org/Page/1724
Location: 1025 Old Farm Road, Thousand Oaks, CA, USA
Phone: (805) 660-5262