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Volume 46

February 2026

South County SELPA Insights is a monthly newsletter full of information and resources brought to you by the South County Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA) team. February is a month full of love, care, and friendship. This month we are sharing tips on showing kindness and including students as an educator to children with special needs. Keep reading to find resources and ways we can assist you and the families you serve.

SELPA Highlights

2026 Art Exhibition Information

Our 18th annual Art Exhibition and District Recognition Awards event is approaching quickly! The theme for this year is, "Splash of Imagination," inspired by sea-life and curiosity about the underwater world. With this theme in mind, we encourage you to begin art projects with students. 

To make things easier, we are taking a different approach on permission slips. We hope this will encourage more participation, as there is no need to collect permission slips. If a student or their family do not want to participate, they can submit a form indicating they opt out.

Please review our instructions. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to

e-mail kendra.sales@sdcoe.net.

Date: April 22

Time: 3:30 to 5 p.m.

Location: South County Regional Education Center (SCREC) 800 National City Blvd., National City, CA 91950

Principals Academy Session 3



We recently held the third session of the Principals Academy. Principals, please be on the lookout for next year’s session dates, which will be shared soon.

During the third session, SELPA staff facilitated a discussion on balancing positive relationships with IEP compliance. Principals shared the following reflections and comments:

"Some of the resources during IEP meetings to make things easier for families."

"I appreciate the honesty of the presenters and making difficult language easy to understand."

Professional Development at Coronado Unified School District

SELPA staff presented on how alternative pathways to a high school diploma, grounded in Universal Design for Learning, can increase access, flexibility, and equity for students. Designing with learner variability and multiple pathways in mind opens space for more inclusive and meaningful conversations about learning and opportunity. Providing professional development to our member districts is crucial in ensuring inclusivity and the most updated best practices.

Winter IEP Academy

We concluded the winter series of our Parent IEP Academy. We thank all of the parents and caregivers who joined us! Please share with any parents/guardians who may benefit from joining our Academy. Our spring program will begin on April 2.

Registration

Chula Vista Elementary School District (CVESD) You, Me, and Your Student's IEP Event

Our ADR team hosted a resource table, alongside community partners that included Chula Vista Police Department’s Blue Envelope program and the San Diego Regional Center at the “You, Me, and Your Student's IEP” at CVESD.

If you are a parent to a child in CVESD and you have questions regarding their IEP, consider attending the next session occurring on April 28 at Sonia Sotomayor Elementary. More details are listed below in the upcoming events section.

Staff Highlight

Every month, we highlight an exceptional staff member who goes above and beyond. This is our opportunity to showcase their incredible work and share their stories, including what inspired them to work with students with disabilities. This month, we would like to introduce a new staff member who we are very excited to welcome to our SELPA team. 

Meet Judy Gastelum, School Administrative Assistant at Davila Day School. She has been working in this field for five years professionally but has a lifetime of experience. Judy was a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults) and grew up with a deaf mother, placing her in deaf and hard of hearing spaces from a very young age. Seeing the communication barriers her mother faced inspired her to help "bridge the gaps" and ensure deaf individuals have access, respect, and a voice in all settings. Her personal connection to the Deaf community has shaped not only her language skills, but also her empathy, cultural respect, and a strong commitment to ethical practice. We are so glad she has joined the Davila team, welcome Judy!

Kindness and Inclusion Tips: Simple Ways to Make Students Feel Welcomed 

February is a good time to focus on kindness and inclusion in our communities. Here are a few simple ways to support students in the classroom:

• During class discussions, regularly ask students with and without disabilities to share stories of when they felt welcomed by others. Students can learn from each other’s experiences.
• Look for opportunities for students with and without disabilities to collaborate on projects 
• Consider how peers can provide natural support to one another. Often adults are assigned to help and support children with disabilities. This can be marginalizing and exclusive. Encourage peers to support their classmates as friends and colleagues, not as helpers.
• Combine “universal supports” (those that benefit everyone) and “individualized supports” (those that an individual student might need), such as visual schedules, timers, and flexible seating options.
• Make sure that students with disabilities are considered for schoolwide recognition, awards, and accolades available to any student.

Here is a great article from Edutopia that provides more ideas on inclusion. Click here to read the full article.

Miracle League San Diego

The spring season is approaching quickly! The upcoming season will run from March 7 through May 17 with no games on Easter weekend. Registration for this season has closed.

The Padres Park Ribbon Cutting Ceremony last month was a great celebration! Professional baseball players from the Padres, Joe Musgrove (pictured below) and Jackson Merrill, joined in the celebrations and were recognized for their contributions. Spring season will be great with the new Padres Park field.

Be sure to follow Miracle League of San Diego on Instagram and Facebook to stay up to date with their latest postings.

Free American Sign Language (ASL) Classes at Davila Day School

Davila Day School is offering a free ASL class on their campus every Wednesday from 3:45 to 5 p.m. Parents, siblings, and community members interested in learning to sign are welcome! Childcare is available during class meetings. There is no registration required for this event.

For more information visit the Davila Day School website.

2025-26 Schedule:

• Q3 Jan. 14 to March 11
• Q4 April 8 to May 27

Location:

Davila Day School

415 Smith Ave., Chula Vista, CA 91910

What is the Community Advisory Committee (CAC)?

The CAC is a team of parents and other individuals with a personal or professional interest in securing appropriate services for students with special needs.

At the next meeting on Feb. 17, our SELPA will be providing a basic services overview. We hope to see you there!

To join the CAC or access more information, see the CAC webpage.

Upcoming CAC Meetings



Feb. 17

9:30 a.m. (in-person)

April 21

9:30 a.m. (in-person)

In-person meetings are located at the South County Regional Education Center at 800 National City Blvd., National City CA 91950

Diagnostic Center Training On-Demand Series 2025-26

This on-demand training series includes five webinars tailored to specific topics. They are available at any time and at your own pace after registration. See below for the different options available to you and click on title links to register or see more information about each webinar.

B-2 Behavior is Communication with Margot Johnson

B-5 What should I do?! Effective Strategies for Paraeducators to Support Positive Student Behavior with Margot Johnson

M-12 Mental Health Foundation Series with Tim Halphide

S-1 Reading Between the Lines with Andrea Abrishami

S-5 Being a Para Pro of Inclusive Education with Nicole Ward

Feb. 24 — Online Safety and Internet Crime Prevention Webinar Series, Session 2

This is a virtual meeting from 6 to 7 p.m. with Spanish interpretation available. Join us for the second of two informative evening sessions designed for parents and caregivers of middle and high school students. Learn practical strategies to help protect teens online and recognize risks in today’s digital world.

Register

March 10 — Southwestern College Disability Support Services Workshop

Do you have a child with an IEP, 504 Plan, or other disability related academic needs? Join us for an informational workshop on how to support your child during this transition. This is an in-person meeting from 9 to 11 a.m. at the South County Regional Education Center (SCREC) located at 800 National City Blvd., National City, CA 91950.

Register

March 16 — Southwestern College Disability Support Services Workshop

Do you have a child with an IEP, 504 Plan, or other disability related academic needs? Join us for an informational workshop on how to support your child during this transition. This is a virtual workshop from 4 to 6 p.m.

Register

April 2 to 23 — Spring Parent IEP Academy

If you are interested in understanding the IEP process more, wish to participate more in your child's IEP, or have specific questions, consider joining our upcoming South County SELPA IEP Academy. There will be four free virtual sessions in English and Spanish, all meetings are from 10 to 11 a.m.

Register

April 28 — CVESD You, Me, and Your Student's IEP Series

3:30 to 5 p.m. at Sonia Sotomayor Elementary, 1790 Santa Christina Ave.

A free event for Chula Vista Elementary School District families. Attend to learn practical ways to support your student, learn about their IEP, ask questions, and hear about community resources available. Food and childcare are provided. We look forward to seeing you there!

April 29 — 18th Annual Art Exhibition and District Recognition Awards

The 2026 Art Exhibition will begin at 3:30 p.m. at the South County Regional Educational Center (SCREC) at 800 National City Blvd., National City, CA 91950. The official theme for this year is, "Splash of Imagination!" Join us to view student-created art and recognize our member district staff.

Building Your Multi-Disciplinary Team Series: Systems Improvement Approach for Multilingual Students with Exceptional Needs Day 2

March 9 from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Location: Virtual

Audience: Special education teachers, EL coordinators, school psychologists, speech language pathologists, CDE, district level and site-based administrators, and SELPA administrators/staff.

This is a virtual event hosted by the Imperial County SELPA in collaboration with the Project MuSE (Improving Outcomes for Multilingual Students with Exceptional Needs) team. Participants will apply systems lens to instruction and community involvement in the education of students who are multilingual learners with exceptional needs. This will be done via a multi-disciplinary team approach focusing on pre-referral, referral and assessment-best practices. This event will also focus on becoming familiar with the IEP, specifically a focus on ELD (English Language Development) and linguistically appropriate goals/objectives.

Information and registration

If you have any questions or comments on the SELPA Insights newsletter, please contact our team at scselpaadr@sdcoe.net.

Get up-to-the-minute information about what's happening at South County SELPA.