OSEP Discretionary Grant Description
Para-Educators in Pinal County (PEP-C) |
| CFDA Number: |
84.325E |
| Program Name: |
Personnel Preparation to Improve Services and Results for
Children with Disabilities |
| Competition Name: |
Preparation of Personnel in Minority Institutions |
| Project Number: |
H325E000023 |
| Project Director: |
Schiller, Marjorie |
| Organization: |
Central Arizona College
8470 North Overfield Road,
Coolidge, Arizona 852280000
520-876-1935 |
| Beginning Date: |
2000-07-01 00:00:00 |
| Ending Date: |
2004-06-30 00:00:00 |
Abstract |
| Purpose: The ParaEducators
of Pinal County (PEP-C) Project was developed to offer a possible
solution to the problem of Arizona's increasing number of
exceptional students, especially in Native American and Hispanic
populations, and the declining number of certified special educators
and paraeducators. In a collaborative effort, local school districts
(public and private), HeadStart, Central Arizona College, parent
advocacy groups, and a variety of service organization
representatives have banded together in support of the development
of a paraeducator-to-teacher career ladder. The PEP-C Project will
provide financial, academic, emotional, and technological support to
encourage a cadre of currently employed special education
paraeducators to become better qualified in the provision of
services to exceptional children of Pinal County. |
| Method:This project
addresses the need for a short-term as well as a long-term solution,
via the following objectives: 1) recruit, train, and retain a cadre
of currently employed paraeducators through one of two 16-credit
hour certificate-training programs to provide immediate support in
the Pinal County classrooms; 2) place currently employed special
education paraeducators on a career ladder that provides a seamless
interface from the paraeducator position they presently occupy to a
certified service provider in the classroom; 3) recruit and retain a
new cadre of service providers to replace the existing groups as
they move through the program and up the career ladder. Two
certificate programs will be offered; Certificate A geared toward
working specifically with high-incidence disabilities and
Certificate B geared toward working with low-incidence disabilities.
These training modules are based on several paraeducator-to-teacher
training programs such as the Connecticut Department of Education
TOP Program, Washington State Core Competencies model, Vermont
Paraeducator Training Core, and AZ-TAS, a paraeducator training
module developed by the Arizona State Department of Education's
Exceptional Student Services. These programs incorporate several key
elements of adult higher education including offering credit for
life experience, enhanced mentorship, advisement, cohort grouping,
flexible scheduling, financial incentives, field-based learning,
summer and weekend courses, and other support services. |
Children to benefit from this
project: |
| Age: |
Elementary/Middle, Secondary |
| Disability: |
Not Specified |
| Severity of disability: |
Not Specified |
| Ethnicity: |
American Indian, Eskimo, and Aleut; Hispanic |
| Geographic location: |
Not specified |
Personnel preparation program
information: |
Academic degree
to be
received: |
Certificate |
| Program focus: |
Teachers |
| Trainee ethnicity: |
Not specified | |
