Inclusive Preschool:Theres No Place Like HomeMarylands Preschool LRE InitiativeNancy Vorobey, Preschool 619 CoordinatorValerie von Behren, Preschool 619 Monitor and TA SpecialistMaryland State Department of EducationDivision of Special Education/Early Intervention ServicesOSEP National Early Childhood Conference 2008Building Partnerships for Effective Change

Theres no place like home, theres no place like home

Western Maryland has mountain ranges 2827 feet above sea level and the Eastern shore has Ocean City and Assateaque Island complete with wild horses

Southern Maryland is home to the 2nd largest population of bald eagles, scenic waterways and islands, and was settled in 1634 by 140 colonists

Central Maryland is more urban such as Baltimore City and the suburbs of Washington, DC

Marylands Demographics as of 2007Population 5,615,727White 61%, African American 28.9%, Asian 4.9%, Hispanic 6.0%Median household income 65,000Families below poverty 5.3%17.8% High School Diploma, 12.8% Bachelors, 10.8% Graduate Degree or higher13.9% of families speak a language other than English at home2008 pre-k enrollment 27,1792008 Kindergarten enrollment 59,455

Marylands OrganizationThe Maryland State Department of Education is home to:The Division of Early Childhood Development which includes the Office of Child Care, Head Start and Early Childhood General EducationDivision of Special Education/Early Intervention Services, which includes the Maryland Infants and Toddlers Program and Preschool Special Education Services in the Early Childhood Intervention and Education Branch

Marylands Preschool LRE Initiatives

What happened then was rich!

Dedicated funding of $440,000.00from Big BAnalyzed three years worth of Preschool LRE dataShared anecdotal successes from the Preschool LRE teleconferenceMade our pitch to the Assistant Superintendent and she granted us the funding!

The primary objective of the Statewide Preschool LRE Initiative is to get home!

to promote and support a comprehensive, family-centered, driven technical assistance system for all young preschool children, their families and communities. This initiative will offer opportunities for personal and professional growth and systems development in collaboration with families, schools and other community stakeholders to include preschool children with disabilities in typical early childhood settings.

Preschool LRE Initiative has two componentsFunding for projects to improve the continuum of settings for preschool SWD with emphasis on collaboration with families and community partners

Follow the yellow brick road, follow the yellow brick road!Establishing teams to go to community programs and provide coaching, co-teaching, infused related servicesSEFEL and behavior specialistsDifferentiated instruction, adapted curriculum, including community partners and families in training and TAPartnerships with Judy Centers, Head Start, Child Care Centers, Libraries, Parks and Recreation programsReverse mainstreaming, assistive technologyLanguage enrichment programmingFamilies involved in programs and support activities

Regional TA CentersTo build a framework of regional technical assistance to sustain the improvements

But youve always had the power to go home!Each of the Regional TA Centers will be providing coaching, observation to other local systemsMenu of statewide TA 4 presentations at the statewide Head Start Conference

If I Only Had a Brain The Preschool LRE Decision Making ModuleAn online tutorial is being developed to increase the knowledge and skills of LSS preschool special education and early learning staff, community early childhood partners and families to improve preschool LRE decision making and expand options for the LRE continuum through our Maryland State Improvement Grant.

In Maryland, were trying very hard to overcome the Wicked Witch of the West

Thank you.And include to the maximum extent possible, preschool students with disabilities with their typically developing peers in their own communities because there really is NO PLACE LIKE HOME!

Special Thanks to wendyswizardofoz.com

The Lullaby LeagueValerie von Behren410-767-7800vbehren@msde.state.md.usNancy Vorobey410-767-0234nvorobey@msde.state.md.us

NANCYIntroductionsInclusion is not a destination but an option on the continuum that we strive for.*NANCY*NANCY*NANCY140 different languages spoken in Montgomery Co, a suburb of DCBaltimore Citys population as of 2007 637,455 and the median income in the city is 30,000 with another 2.6 million in its suburbsCrime is an issue, 276 homicides in 2006, 6 times the number in NYC and 3 times the number in LA, is indicative of a drug industry that trickles down to plague our schools

*NANCY*NANCY*NANCY to Val*VALThe Preschool LRE TeleconferenceAnd oh, what happened then was rich. *The house began to pitch. The kitchen took a slitch. It landed on the Wicked Witch in the middle of a ditch, Which was not a healthy situation for the Wicked Witch*NANCY1990s funding was 800.00 per child which allowed for promising practices grants to improve preschool LRE, NOW funding is about 400.00 per child so we needed funding other than 619, the DATA REALLY HELPED DEMONSTRATE it was more than just a good idea*NANCYThis is the mission that is driving the project*VALlike Dorothy and her collaborators who all needed to work together, the improvement projects are all centered around partnerships with early childhood gen ed, community partners, familiesRefer to Brief synopsis of preschool LRE improvement projects in folder and go to next slide*VALdiscuss*VALWe wanted to create something that was real and could sustain all these improvement projectsBrief synopsis of ta events, refer to folder*Including SWD has always been possible, but people have to come to it themselves, attitudes have to change and people have to believe in it, just like Dorothy could always go home and when the Scarecrow asked Glinda why she didnt just tell Dorothy she replied, She wouldnt have believed me, she had to learn it for herself and thats what we hope to accomplish with the regional TAGlinda You don't need to be helped any longer. You've always had the power to go back to Kansas. Dorothy I have? Scarecrow Then why didn't you tell her before? Glinda Because she wouldn't have believed me. She had to learn it for herself. Tin Man What have you learned, Dorothy? Dorothy Well, I- I think that it - that it wasn't enough just to want to see Uncle Henry and Auntie Em. And that it's that - if Iever go looking for my heart's desire again, I won't look any further than my own backyard, because if it isn't there, Inever really lost it to begin with. Is that right? Glinda *NANCYSometimes IEP teams forget they have brains when it comes to discussing all the possibilities for preschool SWD, this module is being designed to help, Advisory Group comprised of gen and sped ECE, Judy Center, Head Start, Child Care, parents*VALIn Maryland, were trying very hard to overcome the wicked witch that are barriers of cant do attitudes, funding issues, and lack of knowledge and resourcesby all these initiatives working together*NANCY*VAL*VAL*