CVUSD Updates in Special Education

CVUSD celebrates Inclusive Schools Week annually in the first full week of December. 2024's theme was Every Voice Matters, echoing the fundamental belief that every individual has a unique perspective and contributes to the rich tapestry of our school communities (2024 Inclusive Schools Week, 2024). This year, we are proud to share that CVUSD schools organized over 140 activities district-wide, including:

• Daily announcements targeting a wide range of topics from kindness and acceptance to the Disability Rights Movement and influential individuals with disabilities
• Daily quotes, read-alouds, videos, and school and class wide lessons
• Cooperative and inclusive recess and PE games
• Lunch time activities, including inclusive lawn games, Unified Sports mini-tournaments, karaoke, card and board games, and bracelet and blanket making
• Art activities including photo walls, paper chains, self-portraits, snowflakes and sidewalk chalk
• Communication activities such as "Mix It Up" lunches, poster pledges, bulletin boards and message trees, conversation sticks, community circle discussions, and creative writing
• Social activities such as spirit days, buddy/peer read-alouds, social media posts and newsletters, and the introduction of new Buddy Benches

The Strategic Plan for Inclusion, developed and adopted by the Conejo Valley Unified School District during the 2022/2023 school year, guides the District in its goals to provide all students with disabilities (SWDs) placement within the Least Restrictive Environment and opportunities to increase student access to grade level peers and curriculum. The plan focuses on the following four priorities:

1. Increase the percentage of students receiving 80% or more of their education in the general education setting in order to make progress toward the state target on performance indicator 5a.

2. Increase meaningful student involvement by creating inclusive and empowering educational environments that foster active engagement and success.

3. Provide professional development in strategies to support SWDs in the least restrictive environment to teachers, administrators, and support staff.

4. Maintain a transparent, consistent, and comprehensive system of communication to facilitate trusting and collaborative relationships among all stakeholders.

Since the inception of the Strategic Plan, inclusion in the Conejo Valley has been growing yearly. We are proud of the gains we have made and recognize the need for continual examination for areas of growth. The Strategic Plan for Inclusion for Students with Disabilities is currently being updated for the 2024 through the 2028 school year. Thus far, a group of educational partners including parents/guardians, site and district administrators, school counselors, and teachers have reviewed metrics from the 2022/2023 plan and worked to update the plan. The drafted updates were based on information including, but not limited to: input from the District's Special Education District Advisory Council (SEDAC), input from students and teachers, attendance data, connections to the District's Local Control Accountibility Plan (LCAP), and professional learning feedback data. The revised plan will be published soon!

Please check out some highlights immediately below, and then take a few moments to read through this newsletter to review other highlights, events, and updates taking place across the District this school year alone.

• Increase from 18 co-taught courses in 2020 to 63 co-taught courses in 2024
• Co-teacher and administrator trainings
• Creation of a co-teaching handbook for teachers and administrators
• LRE Increase from 46.1% of students accessing 80% or more of their school day in general education in 19-20 to 51.6% in 22-23
• CVUSD Unified Sports currently working to add at least two new elementary schools, two middle schools, and Conejo Oaks Academy
• Sparkles Cheer continues to grow and thrive
• RISE with the LA Rams events
• Staffing of a paraprofessional supervisor to support recruitment, targeted paraprofessional trainings, and collaboration with school sites for student support
• Addition of classes at Banyan and Ladera, as well as the movement of three Be Me Preschool classes to Sycamore Canyon School, in order to increase inclusion opportunities for students with disabilities in preschool
• Expansion of Aspen co-taught program to include 2nd grade

Our long-awaited, once-delayed first Unified Sports Tournament of the 2024/2025 school year finally took place on December 11th at Newbury Park High School! Bocce ball is always a fan favorite in its universal accessibility, and everyone's excitement was palpable and contagious. Check out the pictures below for a peek into the fun!

Outside of team practices, our CVUSD Unified Sports teams keep the momentum going with a number of other fun activities. From representing at Club Rush and the campus food fair to hosting a Friendsgiving picnic, leading board meetings, getting Maddy on the mic, and dominating lunchtime net games—our students are staying busy and bringing their best every step of the way!

@westlakehighunifiedsports

@tohighunifiedsports

@newburyparkunifiedsports

One of Conejo’s key goals over the past few years has been to grow the number of co-teachers and co-taught classes district-wide—and the results speak for themselves! Take a look at how we've made strides in this exciting initiative. What a fantastic way to provide our students with disabilities greater access to general education opportunities!

Banyan is incredibly proud of its Autism Specialized Program. Banyan has three full time teachers and many support staff available to help Autistic students find success in the school environment spanning from TK-5th grade. Inclusion is a cornerstone of the program. Students all have a fully supported special education class where they receive all related services and special education minutes. They also are full members of a general education classroom at their grade level. Students attend all special events, specialists (PE, music, library etc) with their general education class (often with paraprofessional support) and some portion of the academic day, depending on their individual needs. A huge success Banyan recently experienced was having some students in the upper grade Autism class host a school wide assembly with their general education peers. They spoke on the microphone, passed out awards to students, and demonstrated the pledge and school song. Banyan has a school wide focus on inclusion and acceptance. Banyan also runs an Autism Ambassadors Program where students in general education learn about Autism and plan events for students in the program. All students are an important part of the Banyan Family.

The Be Me Preschool program is a play-based and language enriched program serving preschool children with various abilities at two sites, University Center and Sycamore Canyon School. Each site has three classrooms with a total of 63 students currently being served. New students enroll throughout the year when they turn three years old and are identified as being eligible to receive Specialized Academic Instruction through the Be Me Preschool program.

For the second year, Sycamore Canyon School provides a home to three of our preschool classes. Be Me preschool students participate with typically developing peers in Transitional Kindergarten (TK) during daily outdoor play (recess and lunch), as well as weekly in class time during centers and specialist rotations. Students also participate in assemblies, school actvities, and school-wide events, as appropriate. Be Me teachers, TK teachers, and support staff work collaboratively to support all students and provide unique opportunities for developmentally appropriate inclusive activities.

University Center continues to be the home to the Be Me Preschool Office, three classrooms, school psychologists, and related service providers (SLPs, OT, PT, etc.). Students benefit from regular access to our sensory motor room and participate with typically developing peers at Wonder Preschool during outdoor play weekly.

• Coordinator of Preschool, Director of Special Education - Preschool/Elementary, and Director of Elementary Education hosted “Preschool to TK/K Transition for Students with IEPs” Information Night for parents. Topics included the Transition IEP process, the Special Education Continuum, School of Choice, Age Eligibility for TK and K, and Frequently Asked Questions.

• Be Me Preschool, Wonder Preschool, and CVUSD Preschool hosted a week long Toy Story themed Book Fair and the 2nd annual Preschool Family Literacy Night for all preschool families. More than 65 students participated in the Family Literacy Night which included five different arts/crafts activities stations (dot-markers, slinky-dog craft, sporky crown, create a character with stickers, and alien hands), souvenir bags, photo booth, and story time. Shanda Lee and Jennifer Mundy were guest readers for the event.
• Be Me Preschool Teacher, Jillian Kroytoro was recognized as CVUSD's September Teacher of the Month. She was surprised by the Superintendent, Greater Conejo Valley Chamber of Commerce, Conejo Schools Foundation, School Board members, District Administrators, and her family during a staff meeting.
• Four Be Me Teachers and two Be Me Speech/Language Pathologists (SLPs) were recipients of the Conejo Schools Foundations Teacher Grant awards to purchase materials that will directly support the students.
• Over 120 students receive speech/language services through the program
• The program has managed and coordinated over 160 referrals through the process of initial point of contact (from either parent/guardian or Tri Counties Regional Center), file review, assessments, Individualized Education Plan (IEP) meetings, enrollment, and service delivery.
• Early Start services are provided to 18 infants and toddlers (ages 0- 36 months) by our Early Childhood Special Educator, Speech/Language Pathologist, Vision Specialist, and/or Deaf/Hard of Hearing Specialist.
• Coordinator of Special Education sends out regular newsletters to maintain communication with families and keep them informed about upcoming events. Nov/Dec 2024 Newsletter

Preschool students and families shopped the Toy Story themed book fair, enjoyed crafts, and listened to interactive story time.

• Monthly Coffee with the Coordinator
  
  • Highlights:
  • Department of Rehabilitation representative visit
  • Ventura College I-CAN Program coordinator visit
  • Restorative Circle on safety
  • Restorative Circle for reflection on the 2023/24 school year
  • CVUSD application packet Q&A for paid work at job sites
  • Community day program, Momentum, representative visit
• Monthly COA S’more providing program updates (see past and current newsletters here.)
• Presentations and information booth at CVUSD's Annual College and Career Fair
• Updated COA web landing page and a new COA brochure!
• CVUSD website updated to include COA school and program overview
• Updated program schedule:
• Provides visibility on student’s day to day routines within individual classes and the program as a whole
• Students have always had a set schedule, but it is now posted (whereas previously it was not)
• Posted on the special education COA web landing page

• Students rotate between targeted skills classes three days per week in the afternoons to mirror higher education, adult day programs, and worksite transitions. Skills classes are developed and taught using the Unique Transition Band and are aligned to transition goals and student interests.
• Program schedule ensures that all students have access to up to 19 hours of Community Based Instruction (CBI) weekly for all five-day weeks per the CVUSD/COA calendar.
• Community Outings:
• All classes travel into the community for lunch at least once a week
• Students shop weekly for microbusiness inventory and class cooking items
• Last year: all students attended trips to the Ventura College Diversity Equity and Inclusion Fair and the Reagan Library

Transportation:

• Staff van trainings for two on-site vans
• Addition of daily on-site bus access to support CBI and job site travel

Recreation:

• Basketball/sport court installation
• Community garden plot access
• Dave and Busters end-of-year trip
• Site-assigned APE teacher
• Expansion of existing on-site recreational equipment
• Conejo Valley Adult Education multi-purpose room reserved for COA’s use twice weekly
• 2023 -2024 Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA) grant
• Funded student trip to the Reagan Library
• COA Coordinator, VAPA TOSA, and Inclusion TOSA working to secure a dance/Zumba, music, or art teacher to provide weekly VAPA instruction

• We are now a Unified Champion School!
• Established a partnership with CLU for Unified Sports with university student athletic leaders
• Collaborating with CLU to organize social and athletic events between the two programs for winter/spring 2025!
• Grant application was awarded in December 2024 to be used for sports equipment and supplies

Safety:

• Bollards installed in the parking lot in an area of decreased visibility
• Crosswalk painted and parking lot repaved
• Raptor system used at the District Educational Center (DEC) for visitors to COA
• Fencing added at end of park to delineate boundaries between the park and campus
• Monthly, scheduled safety drills and safety plan reviewed by coordinator
• Safety drill schedule outlined in coordinator S'more

Workability:

• Additional job sites. Complete job site list updated on program and individual class schedules listed here.
• Began working with local businesses in the 24-25 school year to add job tours
• Paid 10 student workers in 2023/24 and 18 student workers in 2024/25
• Additional transition curriculum, including transition assessments
• All students have opportunity to work at the Joe on the Go Coffee Cart (Previously only one class was accessing the cart)
• Joe on the Go Coffee Cart now visits District Advisory Councils!

Monday through Thursday from 10:15-10:45

Conejo Oaks Academy

1025 Old Farm Road

Thousand Oaks, CA 91360

We are around back!

SEDAC’s purpose is to advise and support high-quality special education and support services for CVUSD students by working collaboratively with the CVUSD Administration and Board of Education on all things related to educational programs, policies, procedures, and specific actions being taken for students who receive special education services.

We are proud that we have fostered strong relationships with fellow District Advisory Councils (DAC) such as GATE, PTSA, Student DAC, and DELAC, as well as community partners such as Boys and Girls Club, Conejo Parks and Recreation, Thousand Oaks Library, Independent Living Resource Center, Rainbow Connection and SELPA.

Please join us at our next SEDAC meeting to be held on January 7, 2025. The Directors of Special Education in collaboration with the Paraeducator Supervisor will be hosting a presentation titled, "Paraeducators 101" where you can learn all about the hiring, staffing, training, and support provided to CVUSD students by paraeducators. Please click the button below to learn more about SEDAC and to find the list of all meeting dates, times, and locations.