Statewide DeafBlind Community of Practice Meeting

Minnesota DeafBlind Community of Practice - Virtual Zoom Meeting

Link for participation will be emailed to CoP representatives and registrants.

This event is free to participants.

Monday, February 28, 2022

9:00 am - 3:00pm 

9:00-9:15 a.m.          Welcome and Updates - Introducing Brandy Johanson Sebera; Updates on the National Intervener Certification            ePortfolio process; Website/YouTube

9:15-9:45                   2021 National Center on Deaf-Blindness Federal Child Count - Deanna Rothbauer

9:45-10:45                 IEP Discussion Guide: Determining the Need for an Intervener - Kim Simshauser

10:45-11:00              Break

11:00 - 12:00            The Basic Human Need for Closure and Its Impact on Children and Youth Who Are DeafBlind - Maurice Belote

12:00 - 1:00              Lunch Break

1:00 - 1:30                 Stories from the Mainstream - Being DeafBlind in School – Patrick Vellia

1:30-2:00                   One-Pagers for DeafBlind Students – Garrett Petrie, MDE – Education Specialist – Developmental Cognitive Disabilities

2:00-2:45                   One-Pager Work Time; Discussion - Ideas for Increasing School Intra-Team Communication

2:45-3:00                   Evaluation and March 18, 2022, workshop reminder

 

Maurice Belote

Maurice Belote is a graduate of the federally-funded teacher training program in deafblindness at San Francisco State University and has worked exclusively in the field of deafblindness for over 40 years. Prior to joining the state deafblind project, he served for two years as a one-on-one teacher for a deafblind adolescent and another nine years as a teacher of deafblind young adults at the California School for the Blind.  Maurice just retired as the Project Coordinator of California Deafblind Services after 30 years.  Maurice is a frequent presenter at state, national, and international conferences and has written extensively on educational issues specific to children and youth who are deafblind. He serves as co-chair of the National Coalition on Deafblindness, which advocates for recognition of interveners and teachers of the deafblind in federal law. His passions include ensuring that students with deafblindness leave school with effective communication systems and are fully prepared to have the same kinds of wonderful lives that any of us would wish for ourselves.

Description:  Humans have a basic need for closure. Closure is the reason why we do not like stories with ambiguous endings, musical pieces that do not achieve resolution with final and pleasing consonance, or tasks that repeat over and over without variation. For general education students without disabilities, closure is achieved in ways that most take for granted such as the return of graded assignments, projects that are completed, transitioning from grade to grade at the end of a school year, and graduations upon completion of middle school and high school. For students who do not experience many of these same markers and milestones, the lack of closure can result in unnecessary high levels of stress, and for students who are deafblind, lack of closure may be one of the contributors to stress and anxiety.

Garrett Petrie

Garrett Petrie is the state education specialist for developmental cognitive disabilities at the Minnesota Department of Education and presents about person-centered planning across the state including one-pagers to help IEP teams understand student needs at a glance.

Kim Simshauser

Kim Simshauser is currently a teacher of blind/visually-impaired working with several DeafBlind children in her district.  She initially graduated from the University of Minnesota with her Master of Education with a license to teach students who are deaf/hard of hearing in 2005. In 2015, Kim graduated from Salus University with her license to teach students who are blind/visually impaired. During her time as a deaf/hard of hearing teacher and currently in her role as a teacher of blind/visually-impaired, she has worked with many students who are DeafBlind and has collaborated with special education teams in determining the need for interveners for her students.

Patrick Vellia

Patrick grew up as a DeafBlind student in the general education classroom setting on Long Island.  Mainstreamed all his life, he graduated from high school in 2006 and earned his bachelor’s degree in American Sign Language with a minor in Business Administration from Gardner-Webb University in North Carolina in 2015.  Patrick is also a Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies (CPAAC). In his free time Patrick has completed several half Ironman triathlons, competed in open water swimming, walked 50 miles for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, and performed with 200 other dancers during a Zumba halftime show at a Charlotte Hornets game. For his day job, he works as a catering cook for the Target Center.  Patrick is also the treasurer of DeafBlind Support and Access Network and primary web developer for their website.

This initiative is made possible in whole with a grant from the Minnesota Board of Education using federal funding, CFDA 84.027A, Special Education – Grants to States. This event does not necessarily represent the policy of the federal Department of Education or the state Department of Education.  You should not assume endorsement by the federal or state government.

Cancellation: You can cancel your own registration for an event before the cancellation deadline. (Please check the event information for specific cancellation details.) If the event has a fee, refunds are possible only if cancellation is prior to the deadline. If you do not attend and do not cancel prior to an event, you are still responsible for payment and will be billed.

Special Accommodations: Please alert BrightWorks 2-3 weeks prior to the workshop/event if you need special accommodations, including sign language interpreters. (BrightWorks requires a notice of 2 business days to cancel a sign language interpreter. If you fail to cancel, we reserve the right to bill your school/district for this expense.) Update your profile as needed. Special accommodations are not included with each registration, but are stored in your profile until you make changes.