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"Our future is bright!" is the two-month theme for SWIFT National Leadership Consortium this fall. In October, SEA Coordinators from New Hampshire and Oregon each celebrated their SWIFT successes and their continuing commitment to the work. Here are a few ways these state partners have increased their implementation and built capacity:
New Hampshire is committed to the implementation of MTSS as a vehicle to support all students in the general education classroom. For example, Hudson School District is moving to implement MTSS in all five schools, with their middle school serving as an exemplar. Another example is Charlestown Primary School, which made Distributed Leadership System part of their culture as they continue to support fully inclusive classrooms.
The Oregon Department of Education reports dramatic decreases in out-of-school and in-school suspensions, and a 13% increase in the number of students with IEPs who are at or above benchmark on reading screenings from SY 13-14 to SY 15-16. To continue this momentum, ODE hired two full-time SEA Coordinators to lead their continuing SWIFT work with the original four partner districts and four additional scale-up sites. In addition, the state is hiring six regional coaches to provide ongoing support for Oregon MTSS. Although specific priorities vary, all five of our partner states discuss their ongoing commitment to MTSS and the six SWIFT Technical Assistance Practices. We are so proud of their accomplishments!
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On Monday, October 16th,
swiftschools.org
will become the website for the next stage in the life of SWIFT Center. Nothing will be lost—We (still) believe that together we can transform education so that it benefits each and every student, their families, and ultimately the communities in which they live. Our partners in Maryland, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Oregon, and Vermont are testaments to what can be accomplished when we work together to support the needs of all students. And all of the free, downloadable resources, videos, SWIFT Talk blogs, and SWIFT Unscripted podcasts will be available as before. For more information see Dr. Amy McCart’s
SWIFT Talk blog
.
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Meet Dr. Julie Smith
, the Director of Special Programs for the Pendleton (OR) School District, as she shares stories about how schools are working to engage students and families by embracing local cultures. A brief summary of Pendleton’s accomplishments is also available on SWIFT Talk this month.
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SWIFT Talk
is a blog where you can find brief articles from various points of view in the SWIFT community.
This month you can read in brief how the Pendleton (OR) school district leveraged the SWIFT framework emphasis on family and community engagement to set and achieve two important goals to improve attendance of Native American students and to reduce disruptive behaviors. For a more in-depth story, listen to Dr. Smith’s
SWIFT Unscripted podcast
.
Dr. Amy McCart offers
words of gratitude
to the U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs, and to SWIFT partner states, districts, and schools who have engaged in the hard work of transforming their education systems to be welcoming, engaging, and beneficial for all students.
Do you like to write and have a story to share about equity-based inclusive education? SWIFT welcomes submissions that advance the practice of equity, excellence, and All Means All. Click
here
for submission guidelines.
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The SWIFT Center produced this document under U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs Grant No. H326Y120005. OSEP Project Officers Grace Zamora Durán and Tina Diamond served as the project officers. The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the positions or policies of the Department of Education. No official endorsement by the U.S. Department of Education of any product, commodity, service or enterprise mentioned in this publication is intended or should be inferred. This product is public domain. Authorization to reproduce it in whole or in part is granted. While permission to reprint this publication is not necessary, the citation should be: SWIFT Center. (2017). SWIFT News, Issue 48, October 2017. Lawrence, KS: SWIFT Center
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SWIFT Center
1315 Wakarusa Drive,
Lawrence, KS 66049
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