Special ed program off to good start

With the start of the new school year has come a testing period for the Sealy Independent School District’s special education department, which is on its own for the first time after the Austin County Educational Cooperative dissolved earlier this year.

The SISD Board of Trustees heard from special education director Kathy Staruska about the progress the department has made, and the news was good.

“We appreciate your efforts,” SISD Board President Dr. William Hermann said. “It’s a lot of work in a very short time.”

The program serves about 67 students in pre-kindergarten through the fifth grade, about 96 students in junior high, about 108 in high school and 26 who only receive speech services, according to Staruska.

“Keep in mind this doesn’t include some of our new students,” she said.

And this year, parents have the opportunity to meet on the first Thursday of every month for a group parent and staff meeting. Meetings take place from 7 to 8:30 p.m. The department held its first meeting on Sept. 4, with about 12 parents showing up to participate.

“It was very exciting that 12 people did show up,” Staruska said. “It was a very energetic group, and I’m very excited in growing our group. I was really amazed at how insistent they were that I advertise this meeting and they gave me some information on how to do that.”

Those who attend the monthly meetings can brainstorm ideas on ways to make the department even better or just attend to get more information on the program.

“What I see happening is they really provided some support and encouragement toward each other,” Staruska said. “It was just a really good thing, and I’m excited about it.”

She also discussed staff training with the Crisis Prevention Institute. This year, all department staff members will attend a training session with a behavior specialist from Katy ISD, with a full course and a refresher course offered. The sessions allow staff members to learn non-violent crisis prevention techniques.

“It’s to keep staff and students safe, even during the most violent cases of acting out,” Staruska said. “Our staff members are provided with many hours of instruction and practice. Some people never have to use it, but it’s so helpful for a staff to know they’ve been trained if a rare incident occurs.”

The special education department has filled all available positions, but after a busy start, Staruska recommended searching for a part-time speech pathologist to assist the full-time pathologist in day-to-day duties and with related paperwork.

“Our program is very complete, with the exception that it would be very helpful to find a part-time speech person,” Staruska said.

For more information about SISD’s special education department call Staruska at Sealy ISD at 979.885.3516 or visit the department’s new office in the Sealy ISD administration building at 939 Tiger Lane.

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