Project Description:
This project is designed to meet the continuing need for a comprehensive statewide inservice training and technical assistance system for early childhood special education professionals, paraprofessionals, related services professionals and parents of preschool children with disabilities in the State of Kansas. The project will continue, expand, and enhance the inservice training and technical assistance opportunities by providing and supporting collaborative training and technical assistance activities on a comprehensive statewide basis. The project will provide training and technical assistance to preschool and early childhood programs in the state, for children with disabilities (Part B, Section 619 of IDEA). Additionallty, parents and staff of agencies collaborating with those preschool and early childhood programs will be afforded opportunities to be involved with training and technial assistance activities. Professional development needs will be addressed at three levels of training - state, regional, and individual. This will be accomplished through needs assessment for the identification of the statewide priorities, regional needs, and for implementation of technical assistance services developed in concert with Individual Development Plans of professionals as appropriate.
The project's goals will be completed through activities such as a summer institute, dissemination of information through a quarterly newsletter, provision of inservice training, provision of agency and individual technical assistance, development of new teacher and technical assistance packets for practitioners in the field, and management of the identification of exemplary practices in the state. Further, the program will continue to build the statewide early childhood resource center. This center will house materials for professionals and families to access in support of their program or individual needs as well as support through internet searches of information. These materials are also accessible through the internet from across the state, which facilitates the interaction of identifying resource materials with needs of the state, specific agencies, or individuals.
Finally, this program will continue to support and utilize existing structures and opportunities for staff development currently occurring throughout the state thorugh collaborative linkages with other agencies, programs, organizations, and projects in the field of Early Childhood Education.
Core Function(s):
Training Trainees, Performing Technical Assistance and/or Training, Developing & Disseminating Information
Target Audience:
Students/Trainees (long or intermediate trainees), Professionals and Para-Professionals, Family Members/Caregivers
Unserved or Under-served Populations:
Racial or Ethnic Minorities, Disadvantaged Circumstances, Geographic Areas, Rural/Remote, Urban
