www.ces.k12.ct.usFall 2016

Cooperative TimesNews and Services from C.E.S.

Districts reap benefits of PBIS Training learned from C.E.S.“We have strong trainers who know every aspect of the material from their relative perspectives,” said Esther Bobowick, Director of Professional Development Services at C.E.S. “Christine and Tracey have the capacity to differentiate and customize training to best meet the needs of the districts being trained.”

C.E.S. has been a leader in PBIS training since 2010. Across the nation, school systems have adapted PBIS models to follow, effectively teaching children standards on expected behavior that will increase their capacity to learn and engage in the classroom.

Ponus Ridge Middle School in Norwalk was one of the first schools that C.E.S. trained in PBIS. Since training began in 2010, the school has seen significant improvement in student behavior, with the suspension rate reduced in half. As a result, the State Education Resource Center honored Ponus Ridge as a Connecticut PBIS Banner School for 2014-15. Davenport Ridge Elementary School in Stamford, which also received C.E.S. training, was named a PBIS Banner School for 2015-16.

Districts with the most success engage all staff in training. C.E.S. will work with any school system at any phase of the implementation cycle, including those new to PBIS and those in need of refreshing their skills. For more information, visit www.ces.k12.ct.us/pbis.

Cooperative Educational Services (C.E.S.) has established itself as a leader in training for Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS). Several public school systems are now sustaining the systems developed during training and have been recognized for successfully integrating PBIS into their educational cultures.

Through C.E.S., districts such as Norwalk, Trumbull, and Weston have fully rolled out training for every public school. Now, C.E.S. is seeking to continue to train educators in PBIS and help them implement effective, efficient, and culturally-relevant framework that is designed to maximize learning and achievement across their districts.

PBIS is a multi-tiered, comprehensive framework  that guides  school and district teams  on implementing  support systems  to achieve  academically

PBIS Trainer Dr. Christine Peck

and behaviorally important outcomes  for all students. The full training process is completed in a three-year cycle.

Lance Berndlmaier, a school psychologist at Fawn Hollow Elementary School in Monroe, said that C.E.S.’s PBIS trainers have been very responsive and helpful in helping the school implement the training and improving the educational climate.

“At Fawn Hollow, our students care for one another, and we thank C.E.S. and PBIS for providing us with the inspiration, structure, and scientific methodology which frame our school climate and behavioral interventions for our school,” Berndlmaier said. “Most importantly, the climate of our school is deeply affected in the most positive ways. This may be most beautifully expressed in the cheering of students when other students are recognized for our school-wide targeted positive behaviors.”

C.E.S. has two PBIS trainers who have been instrumental in helping districts develop their own standards for success. Dr. Christine Peck brings a school psychologist’s perspective as a behavioral analyst with over 20 years of experience. Tracey Lamothe, a certified teacher and instructional specialist, provides team training and technical assistance to schools.

Our mission is to identify and provide quality educational opportunitiesfor educators, students, families and communities.

(203) 365-8800

C.E.S. Executive Searches, 2015-16C.E.S. completed the following searches since the start of the 2015-16 school year:

Superintendents and Executive Directors

EdAdvance (formerly EDUCATION CONNECTION) - Dr. Jeffrey Kitching Lebanon Public Schools - Robert AngeliMansfield Public Schools - Kelly LymanNew Milford Public Schools - Joshua D. SmithOrange Public Schools - Dr. Vincent ScarpettiSherman Public Schools - Dr. Jeffrey MelendezSuffield Public Schools - Karen BerasiWolcott Public Schools - Dr. Anthony GasperWoodstock Public Schools - Viktor Toth

PrincipalsStaples High School (Westpost) - James D’AmicoWeston Middle School - Daniel Doak

Cooperative Educational Services is proud to announce that Mark L. Winzler has joined our Executive Search Services team as a Lead Consultant. He is now a part of a group that has successfully matched dozens of superintendents and other executives with districts and RESCs throughout the state of Connecticut.

Winzler is currently the interim superintendent for Torrington Public Schools. He will consult with C.E.S. during his interim position and will continue with Executive Search Services once Torrington appoints a permanent superintendemt.

He was the superintendent of Bolton Public Schools until his retirement in 2009. He has since served as an interim superintendent in Granby, Berlin, Watertown, Rocky Hill, East Hampton, Columbia, Plymouth, and Hebron, as well as interim assistant superintendent in Windsor.

Winzler’s educational experience includes two assistant superintendencies, more than a decade as principal of E.O. Smith High School in Mansfield, and as an instructor in the Sacred Heart University Sixth Year Program in Educational Leadership. In 1998, he received the National Educator Award. He earned his Bachelor’s degree from Upsala College in New Jersey and his Master’s degree and Sixth Year Professional Certificate from the University of Hartford.

All of C.E.S.’s Executive Search consultants are former superintendents who collectively represent several decades of experience as educators and leaders. For more information on C.E.S. Executive Search Services, please visit www.ces.k12.ct.us/ExecutiveSearches.

Winzler joins C.E.S. Executive Search Services team

C.E.S. Search Consultant Tom Jokubaitis

Our mission is to identify and provide quality educational opportunitiesfor educators, students, families and communities.

www.ces.k12.ct.us

Our goal is to provide innovative, cutting edge programs and services tomeet the demands of our member school districts and communities.

Meet the PDS Specialist: Amy DuroAmy Duro has been quite busy in her first year as the C.E.S. Instructional Specialist in Math. Since last October, she has crisscrossed much of Fairfield County, meeting and advising math coaches on engaging their students.

“I have learned a great deal from working at C.E.S.,” Duro said. “I work with a very supportive team in Professional Development Services and I’m meeting people every day and learning from those experiences.”

Duro is well experienced as a math teacher and coach in both urban and suburban districts. She has taught in New York City and Bridgeport and was a math coach in upstate New York. Through her experience, she’s learned how to teach math to students of all levels.

“I like helping people and teachers so that they can in turn help their students,” Duro said.

She travels to districts to meet with elementary and middle school math teachers and coaches, helps curriculum leaders to instruct

their own colleagues on effective techniques, and provides training to educators who teach math to English Language Learners.

Duro believes that effective teaching is evident when a student becomes engaged in math. When a child struggles with the subject, she advises teachers to collect as much data as possible and interview their students to better understand where the difficulty lies.

Duro resides in Cortlandt Manor, New York, with her husband and children. She earned her undergraduate degree from Mercy College and her Master’s degree from Western Connecticut State University. She is currently seeking a degree in Educational Leadership from Stony Brook University.

C.E.S. Math Specialist Amy Duro

Scenes from C.E.S. - Fall 2016Left: A student from C.E.S.’ Therapeutic Day Program levitates eyeballs during a Halloween visit from Mad Science of Fairfield and New Haven Counties. Right: Regional Center for the Arts students perform movements inspired by the Vertigo Dance Studio. The Israeli troupe visited RCA courtesy of a partnership between C.E.S. and Fairfield University’s Quick Center for the Performing Arts. Vertgo recently performed at the Quick Center.

40 Lindeman Drive Trumbull, CT 06611 (203) 365-8800

www.ces.k12.ct.us

MemberDistricts

BridgeportDarienEastonFairfield

GreenwichMonroe

New CanaanNorwalk

Region #9RidgefieldStamfordSheltonStratfordTrumbullWeston

WestportWilton

C.E.S. launches Speech and Language Therapy Services program

Cooperative Educational Services has launched a new Speech and Language Therapy Services program, which seeks to address a critical shortage of speech and language pathologists throughout the state’s public school districts.

Through the new initiative, C.E.S. is offering a contract service of qualified and dedicated therapists to districts at a reasonable cost. Whether districts need part-time or long term help, C.E.S. can tailor its service to meet district needs and staff shortages and gaps in services. All therapists and pathologists are expertly trained to work with students, teachers, and families to understand the needs of each child served.

The service comes at a time when the need for speech and language therapists and pathologists is outpacing the number of qualified candidates. In 2015, about one out of every six districts posted vacancies for speech and language therapists and

pathologists. As a result, districts turn to private independent firms to meet their needs, which is a pricy fix that constrains school budgets and provides no long term solutions.

C.E.S. will staff the initiative in partnership with local colleges, including Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, which is set to graduate its first cohort from its Speech and Language Pathology program. By partnering with colleges and their graduates, C.E.S. can draw upon a field of enthusiastic and educated therapists with a cutting edge knowledge of effective practices. C.E.S. experts also provide further guidance to the graduates and helping them to achieve the necessary licensing.

For more information on the initiative, including pricing, please contact C.E.S. Special Education Director Dr. Michael Regan at reganm@ces.k12.ct.us or by phone at (203) 365-8840.

The starting line at the C.E.S. 5k Fall Classic, held on Oct. 15 at Seaside Park in Bridgeport.