Understanding Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) and the potential impact on education and student achievement
Christy Baker, MA - NCFASD Informed
Alison Parker, PhD - NCFASD Informed
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is an invisible disability that impacts 1 in 20 across the United States (May et al., 2018). This is 2.5 times more than Autism. A small percentage of youth (less than 10%) are diagnosed with FASD and FASD is often misdiagnosed as ADHD, ODD and Autism. As a result, schools may have a higher number of children with FASD in their classrooms than is actually known (Millar et al., 2017). Even for those that receive a diagnosis, children and adolescents with FASD may experience a number of challenges in their behavioral, emotional, and cognitive functioning. Limited information is available regarding the identification and support of students with FASD in the educational setting because it is not a separate category specifically defined under IDEA education law. Thus, awareness of FASD is important among professionals that work with youth in school settings in order to provide services and supports that address the diverse needs of youth with FASD.
Engaging Families for Student Success
Heather Bower, PhD - Meredith College
Family engagement is often a struggle for schools, but school psychologists can play pivotal roles in meaningfully engaging families in ways that leverage their strengths to improve student outcomes. Frameworks of family engagement and best practices will be shared, and then the community will collaborate to build family engagement plans for their specific settings.
LGBTQ&A
Brit Cooper, MA, EdS, NCSP - Brunswick County Schools
Have you ever had a kid disclose LGBTQIA2-S status and not known what to do‚ or maybe what it meant? Ever wonder how to type a report respecting a student's gender identity or how to facilitate meetings for a nonbinary student? How about consider the best way to gather observations and score behavior scales for transgender students? What do you do if a parent calls asking if their kid is gay or if a student reports that a staff member keeps intentionally dead-naming them? What are the laws, ethics, and morals regarding LGBTQ+ students? Let's have a talk about where lie the invisible ties connecting what is legal, what is ethical, and what is moral.
This session meets criteria for continuing education hours in the areas of equity, diversity, inclusion, and social justice.
This session is for in-person participants only.
The Low-Hanging Fruit of Accessibility
Darrin Evans, MEd - Director, Virtual Learning Community Professional Development Center, Wake Technical Community College
During this session, participants will be introduced to the concept of accessibility and access five (5) easy things to do to make content more accessible.
This session will cover material in-line with the Digital Learning requirements for NCDPI licensure.
This session does not meet criteria for APA approved contact hours
This session is for in-person participants only.
Medicaid Reimbursement for School Psychology Services
Lauren Holahan, PhD, OT/L, FAOTA - NC Department of Public Instruction
This session will provide an overview of NC school-based Medicaid reimbursement standards, best practices, and ethical considerations for school psychologists. IDEA (2004) requires Medicaid funding precede the financial responsibility of the local education agency (LEA) when providing services to Medicaid-enrolled students with Individualized Education Programs [IEP] (Sec. 300.154). As such, school practitioners and administrators can, with good conscience, participate in compliant school-based Medicaid claiming programs to sustain and strengthen this critical resource. Orientation to relevant resources and ample time for Q & A will be provided.
This session meets criteria for continuing education hours in the areas of ethical practice and/or the legal regulation of school psychology for NASP Approved hours.
School Psychology Best Practices With Military Families
Mark Pisano, EdD - Fort Bragg DODEA Schools
As conflict escalates in Europe, troops from the United States are being deployed at an increasing rate. Data shows that 80% of military families have children attending public schools. The deployment cycle places varying types of stress on military family members. This presentation will take a deep dive into the deployment cycle and explain the intricacies of each stage emphasizing the impact on children. Stages will be explained and suggestions for interventions will be shared. The presenter will tap into his 40 years of experience with military families to offered ideas and guidance on how to meet the needs of military children in the classroom including how to conduct small groups for children and non-deployed parents. Ideas on how schools can 'honor' military families particularly during the week of the military child will also be shared. The Sesame Street curriculum for Military Families will also be reviewed to provide attendees with full knowledge of how to use it and where it can be found. Sesame Street's military family curriculum also provides suggestions on how to talk to children about a military parent death; this curriculum will also be shared and discussed.
This session is for in-person participants only.
