This year-long opportunity will include monthly job shadowing experiences in both the public and private school settings. Additionally, students will have the opportunity to attend a speaker series, and participate in college visits and the Special Education Career Fair. 

High school students expressing an interest in a career in special education will have two opportunities across the academic year to work in an IU classroom for half the day and participate in a college career exploration activity whereby they can engage with higher education staff and learn about specific certification programs. 

Any 11th and 12th grade students who are considering a career in special education have the opportunity to participate in a variety of learning experiences to include:

• Speakers

• College visits

• Classroom observations

• Tutoring opportunities

• Future Educators of America club

High school students expressing an interest in a career in special education will have two opportunities across the academic year to work in an IU classroom for half the day and participate in a college career exploration activity whereby they can engage with higher education staff and learn about specific certification programs. 

This six session series is designed for 10th and 11th grade students. Guest speakers from various special education positions will share insights into their career pathway, the specific components of their role, and what led them to this work.

Each session will be offered live and recorded for those who are unable to attend.

This structured year-long program will provide both Carlow University Special Education graduate and undergraduate students, as well as participating Best Buddies Bethel Park High School students, a supportive learning experience working with students with disabilities. The program will include:

• Orientation Sessions

• Shadowing and Mentorship

• Collaborative Projects

• Social and Recreational Activities

• Feedback and Reflection Sessions

• On Campus Visits for Secondary Students

Make a Splash as a Future Special Educator will bring local high school, technical school, and community college students together with Cedar Crest College education majors, education faculty, and Special Olympics athletes and their families for an exciting and educational half-day experience. The goals of the experience include:

• Special Education Career Pathway Exploration

• Participation in engaging activities with swimmers who are Special Olympic athletes 

This program will be offered twice in Spring 2025 and twice in Spring 2026. 

This program, slated to begin in September 2024,  is designed to provide secondary students with an opportunity to gain firsthand insights into the life of a special educator. Participants will help plan and facilitate activities during events like World Autism Day at Camp Victory. Additional components of the program include:

• Commonwealth University campus tour and program exploration

• Guest teacher training and scenarios

• Mentoring from post-secondary special education students to plan and facilitate World Autism Day

The Trojan Nation Future Educators program is a semester long program that will provide participating students with facilitated learning opportunities. Students will gain first hand experience through peer and classroom mentoring within various programs. The monthly training sessions will introduce students to special education career options, educational and certification requirements, and available financial incentives. Various special education disabilities and eligibility requirements will also be explored and facilitated by Chambersburg Area School District Special Education Administration. 

Secondary students may elect to participate in one or more campus visits in the fall of 2025 to learn about the available special educator preparatory programs from the staff who coordinate the programming. 

This attraction experience will immerse Chestnut Hill College freshman and sophomores in a week-long spring break opportunity to work with students at the Lindley Academy, a Philadelphia charter school that serves traditionally underserved populations. Students will:

• Observe a co-taught classroom

• Engage in activities within the co-taught classroom

• Participate in a morning meeting circle to learn about Lindley and career opportunities

• Participate in a daily debrief session led by Lindley faculty 

• Meet individually with Chestnut Hill College special education faculty within a month of the opportunity ending to discuss and reflect upon the experience and review potential special education programs

Post-secondary students enrolled in EDSP 362 - Teaching Reading for All Learners in the fall 2024 and 2025 semesters, will visit Lindley Academy (Philadelphia charter school) to explore the benefits of co-teaching. This opportunity will be a hands on experience in classrooms across grades K-8.

Secondary students who elect to participate in this club will have opportunities to explore both school-based special education programming as well as programs that are located outside of the traditional school setting. Students will have experiences with low and high incidence populations while learning about varied academic, behavioral, and social programming consisting of 5 phases:

• Phase 1 - Introduction to the varied special education roles and pathways

• Phase 2 - Instruction on special education programming and laws 

• Phase 3 - Classroom experiences with students with disabilities

• Phase 4 - Sensory room tour

• Phase 5 - Participation in planning, researching, and purchasing high-tech sensory equipment

Students in grades 9-12 will have the opportunity to participate in campus tours and job shadowing in CIU20 and Pocono Mountain School District (PMSD) classrooms as well as with related service providers. Students will document these opportunities by journaling about the experiences to narrow their interests and potentially sparking an interest in future career paths. CIU20 will also host a University/College Special Educational Fair during the 24-25 and 25-26 school years so that students interested in the field of special education can get to know what programs are available and how financial aid can be accessed. 

Post secondary students will explore various aspects of careers in special education through attending events sponsored by professional organizations and government agencies. Targeted events may include:

• Teacher Education Advocacy Day at the State Capitol 

• Pennsylvania Department of Education Conference 

• Pennsylvania Positive Behavioral Support Implementors' Forum 

Peer Inclusion Intramural Sports Club provides a unique opportunity for students with and without disabilities to come together through ongoing educational and functional activities. Students will collaborate with one another and participate in both team and individual sports as well as fitness activities, while gaining the knowledge and skills necessary to maintain a health-enhancing level of fitness.

Additionally, the class supports the development of leadership skills for all students, and the empowerment of ALL students to foster an inclusive school-wide culture.

The goal of this project is to increase opportunities for secondary students to be dual enrolled at a low cost of $50/credit. This opportunity will be broadly marketed for face to face or distance education courses. Students will have the opportunity to complete the course requirements and field experiences in their home schools while also participating in experiences such as Best Buddies, Buddy Walk, Special Olympics, and Unified Champion Schools.

In collaboration with Pocono Mountain Area School District high schools, secondary students will have the opportunity to visit the ESU campus once per semester to be introduced to student life and integrate into classroom activities. Students will also have an open invitation to all ESU events. This established opportunity has resulted in students electing to attend ESU and major in special education and related service areas and will be expanding to other school districts across the term of the grant. 

Additionally, East Stroudsburg Area School District has become a Professional Development School (PDS) for all ESU special education PK-12 undergraduate students. This program supports collaboration between the school and ESU faculty working for placements, experiences, and ultimately future employment. 

All undergraduate Education degree/certification students are required to take EDUC 201: Introduction to Special Education and EDUC204: Inclusive Education courses which require a total of 30 hours of field experience within a special education or inclusive-classroom setting. The plan is to continue what was started in the previous Developing Future Special Educators Grant, where Eastern partnered with two LEAs to provide high-quality field experience opportunities in selected and specialized classrooms, encouraging a shift from the traditional observational learning to experiential learning. 

These hands-on workshops will be offered to any student interested in education and will give students the opportunity to design materials, hear first-hand experiences and explore the many different options available in the field of special education. Workshops will be offered throughout the year and begin with "A Day in the Life of A Special Educator" to help participants understand the varied pathways available. Case studies will be included affording students the opportunity to collaboratively make decisions about how best to meet students' needs. In some workshops, students will have the opportunity to build materials for their future classrooms. All participants will be able to earn extra credit in select education courses for attendance at the workshop. 

This opportunity is an extension of a previously established ELO which created a teaching assistant (TA) position for the course EDUC 201. This opportunity will expand to include the course EDUC 204 in the Spring of 2025. The role of the TA will be to focus on the fieldwork component of the course and serve as a mentor to current students. The TA will meet with each student a minimum of one time per term to discuss the fieldwork and help identify ways to become more engaged working with students with special needs. 

Secondary students will have the opportunity to participate in a structured program where they attend college courses three days a week in the morning, laying the foundation for their education career path. The remaining two days, students will engage in practical, hands-on experience through a practicum within their home school district's classrooms. This dual approach provides students with a comprehensive learning experience while also exposing them to experiences in working with students with disabilities within an inclusive educational environment.  Under the guidance of experienced educators, students actively contribute to classroom activities, gain insights into teaching methodologies tailored to diverse learners, and develop essential skills for effectively supporting the needs of students with disabilities.

In this program, students entering their senior year in high school will lend their support to the extended school year (ESY) sessions offered by the school district. Throughout the summer, these seniors will work closely with educators and staff to assist students enrolled in ESY which caters to students with disabilities and in need of additional academic support. Seniors will engage in a variety of roles, including tutoring, mentoring, and providing classroom assistance under the guidance of experienced educators. Through this hands-on experience, seniors will have the opportunity to apply their knowledge and skills in a real-world educational setting, while also gaining valuable insights into the needs and challenges of students with disabilities. 

Unified Futures is an innovative learning program designed to provide high school students with hands-on experience in the field of special education. This program connects students with disabilities and their peers through two main components: Unified Bocce and a vocational training programming at a student-run coffee shop within the High School. The goal is to foster inclusive environments, build meaningful relationships, provide expanded opportunities for job-based coaching, and, through exposure, inspire careers in special education.

This ELO is designed to guide future special educators on an educational journey through various experiences both within and outside of the district. They will have the opportunity to experience the daily life of special education professionals, gain invaluable insights, and develop the skills necessary for a fulfilling career in this field. The students will explore special education through immersive job shadowing and internship experiences. They will learn from seasoned special educators, understand the diverse career paths available, and prepare for a future dedicated to supporting students with disabilities.

This ELO is designed to provide mentorships between in-service special education teachers in local LEAs and pre-service students that are interested in the field of special education. Immaculata University will host mentor/mentee events which will help form connections between the mentor and mentees and help students develop an understanding of special education career options. Immaculata University will provide resources to mentorship groups to guide discussions, interactions, and observation opportunities. 

Future special educator students will visit the IUP campus to: 

• Meet with Education Preparation Program staff to learn about what is needed to become a teacher candidate at IUP and how to prepare while still taking high school classes. 

• Learn about admission to IUP including the 4 + 1 program where students can begin taking graduate courses while still an undergraduate and graduate with a master's one year after graduating with their undergraduate degree.  

• Attend various education specific courses from a variety of departments and programs to see how students are prepared. Some potential courses are EDEX 103 – Special Education Technology, MATH 335 -Teaching Mathematics in Special Education, EDUC 242 and 342-Pre-Student Teaching Clinical Experience I and II. EDUC 451 – Teaching Science in Secondary Schools  

• Students will participate in a specially designed workshop at IUP’s STEAMSHOP to explore and create assistive technologies that they can then take back to their districts.

Up to 8 students will complete an internship with the school district. Interns are supervised by the building principal to which they are assigned and work as assistants.

The ELO is a campus visit for high school juniors from Pocono Mountain School District who express interest in teaching.

1. Students will engage in an informational session about Special Education programs at Kutztown University presented by faculty and current students including:

• An overview of programs with hands-on activities related to our programs (e.g., trying assistive technology, learning to write their names in Braille, engagement in a scaffolded activity to demonstrate specially designed instruction).

• Conversations with current students and help with financial planning from a representative of the Financial Aid Office. 

2. Tour of the campus and have lunch in the Cub Cafe on campus with faculty and current students. 

4. Attend a class in the Special Education Department.

Students who express a strong interest in becoming special education teachers will be paired with a current Kutztown University student peer mentor.  The  students will engage in monthly Zoom meetings with their Kutztown University mentors. Monthly meetings may include guidance on topics such as time management and studying in college; learning about field experience opportunities with students with disabilities;  advice on networking as a pre-service teacher; and discussions of professional ethics. 

Laurel High School will establish a coffee shop to create and explore careers in the area of special education through service learning activities.

High school students will spend time on campus to learn about Special Education programs. They will:

• Engage in a STEAM-based Special Education activities designed to enhance their knowledge and skills. 

• Interact with experts in Special Education, ask questions, and gain valuable insights into current practices and challenges in the field.

Post secondary students will interact with emerging and new professionals who are very close to their lived experience including current student teachers and first and second year teachers who were once student teachers at Lindley Academy. 

Each site visit will be divided into three parts:

1. Mini Lesson on IDEA eligibility, classifications, and other timely topics presented by experienced special education professionals

2. Observations with class assignments that will be debriefed  in coteaching classes

3. Equity focused book study

High school students will learn about the different specialties encompassed in special education, the education required for those specialties, the potential salaries and benefits associated with each specialty, and what professional educators do to support students. They will have the opportunity to see materials, hear from experienced educators, and engage by asking questions directly to the individuals who are in the field. 

Secondary and postsecondary students interested in the field of special education will learn about the various professions in the field of Special Education. Students will learn about special education at various grade levels (PreK-12) and other related careers working with students with disabilities, such as speech-language pathology, occupational therapy, Teacher of the Deaf, Autism support specialist, school psychology, and/or physical therapy programs. The students will have the opportunity to learn about specific roles and job functions of a variety of special education career options to inform students’ professional interests, goals, and aspirations. 

Partners in PE pair peer tutors with students with disabilities in a physical education class so general education students opportunities have hands-on experiences in the teaching process. They will learn more about individual learning needs and knowledge of different disabilities.

Students are grouped together to help each other reach the goals of a Foods class while also learning about individual learning styles and gaining knowledge of various disabilities. Through varied lab experiences, all students will learn basic food preparation techniques, science, personal hygiene, personal wellness and consumer skills. Students will build relationships and gain experience in working with students with disabilities while lesson planning and creating adaptations.

Students will visit local universities to tour the campuses, meet with the head of the education department, shadow a college student majoring in education, and ultimately experience the life of a college student majoring in education for the day.

Students will explore the roles and job functions of special education career options through a variety of activities including teaching lessons about the field of special education and visiting special education classrooms within and outside the district and one outside the district. Students will visit the Lebanon Valley College Special Education Program, a school-to-work program at LVC, r IU programs, and a possible visit to Penn State Harrisburg and/or Millersville University to explore their programs that support inclusive studies. 

Students in grades 9-12 will  explore careers related to the field of special education.  They will complete multiple observations of classrooms within the school district and Colonial Intermediate Unit 20 special education classrooms. They will also observe related service providers or school psychologists to make a connection to all career clusters in the field of special education. 

Students will also participate in job shadowing and collaborate with current staff and service providers to enhance their awareness of career options. Students will complete a portfolio that highlights their observations. This portfolio will meet parts of Act 339 and Act 158 Career Pathways.

The students will also be paired with a mentor teacher and given opportunities to learn about supporting students with varying abilities. 

The purpose of ELO 2 is to provide an opportunity for current Point Park students enrolled in Special Education classes to experience and work in diverse special education schools. The goal is that they will develop a passion for working with students with special needs and find a school where they can see themselves working in the future.

In the Future Educators Club, students will be provided the opportunity to meet bi-weekly and learn valuable information about the field of Special Education. General information about disabilities will be provided, with a desire to mirror aspects of an introductory special education course at a local university.

RIASEC, the most widely adopted framework for interest measurement, is a taxonomy for Realistic Doers, Investigative Thinkers, Artistic Creators, Social Helpers, Enterprising Persuaders, and Conventional Organizers. 

The RIASEC language used by River Valley invites students to explore their interests, develop an understanding of the language, and advance possibilities for all students by aligning their strengths, interests, and values to academic and career-related learning. The RIASEC framework helps students connect their strengths, interests, and values to academic and career options. With the RIASEC approach, River Valley is creating a common language of career exploration that is also used by colleges, universities, and the Department of Labor to make powerful connections between classroom learning, postsecondary education, and the job world.

Students in the Rising Riverside Educator club will continue to be paired with recommended elementary students who need reinforcement and remediation of foundational skills. High school students additionally will be paired with a Special Education teacher in grades K-12, including Speech and Language Pathologists, OT, and PT to job shadow for 10 hours per semester. 

Students will also have the opportunity to spend 6 hours job shadowing a paraprofessional within the district. During club meetings 1 time per month students will prepare activities and explore career clusters within the field.

 Additionally, students in the club will be provided with opportunities to visit local colleges and universities to be exposed to their education programming as well as opportunities to visit special education settings outside of the traditional K-12 public school setting. Students will also have the opportunity to plan and implement STEAM camp for Pre-K through 5th grade students.

This learning opportunity will allow students to consider the needs of learners with exceptionalities and disabilities in order to plan an outdoor sensory-rich environment on the playground. High School students will work to research, plan, fundraise and create a sensoryrich environment on an already established playground. Students will then be responsible to promote the importance of outdoor play and the need for playgrounds and outdoor learning spaces that are designed to help all children develop.

Life skills students preparing for transition will be given job related experiences to help build career development skills.  They will be paired with general education students to complete these tasks in a mentorship type relationship.

We would like to start a networking group in our area composed of different schools coming together for social and networking opportunities. The goal would be for at least 4 schools to come together in the first year for a social of some sort (like a sensory friendly dance or field day).  

The schools participating would be required to include those with disabilities and those without.  Our school inclusive leaders club, will create connections with these schools with the goal of planning co-run activities through the region. This would create additional opportunities for secondary students to interact with students of various disabilities, increase exposure of the secondary students to other working professionals in the field of special education, as well as allow social activities for those with and without disabilities.

Career QuickConnect: Speed Networking Event is similar to a speed dating event in that high school students will have a short time (i.e. 5 minutes) to speak with a special education professional and then move on to speak with another professional. It is an opportunity to bring professionals working in the area of special education to TNA to describe the path they took to their career, their job in special education, and to share how working in their profession changes both their lives and the lives of children with disabilities. Students will be given sample questions that they might ask the professionals but are encouraged to develop their own inquiry. It is an active approach to engaging high school students in investigating careers in special education.

Community Connections involves high school students from TNA connecting with special education schools in their community through field visits, helping with activities, reading to students, etc. They have the option of going to DSHS or ACLD Tillotson once/month to connect with teachers and establish relationships with students with disabilities.

The Teacher Trek: Navigating the Teacher Preparation Roadmap experiential learning opportunity consists of TNA secondary students coming to the Robert Morris University campus and meeting with staff from admissions and financial aid learn to learn about the application and financial aid process. They will meet special education faculty to discuss the process for becoming a certified teacher in PA. Students will take a tour of the campus and have lunch with the dean.

 Additionally, in order to help students see themselves succeeding as college students, they will sit in and participate in a college teacher preparation class, i.e. Inclusive Practices. Then, they will follow up by participating with the special education teacher candidates in an activity at DSHS or ACLD Tillotson. This college visit will provide an opportunity for TNA high school students to integrate the knowledge from their career studies, career speed dating event, and field visits with the pathway to entering the teaching profession.

This experiential learning opportunity will provide Shippensburg University undergraduate students who have not yet declared a major, as well as high school students who are dual enrolled, with the opportunity to take our Introduction to Exceptionalities special education course and also to receive training and hands-on experience serving as job coaches for students with disabilities in the HIRE ME, Ship SAILS, and Ship ANCHORED programs.

The ELO will invite high school students to Slippery Rock University (SRU) and engage them in a campus visit hosted by the special education department. The programming will be approximately half a day. 

SRU has partnered with Plum Borough School District, A.W. Beattie Career Center, and Slippery Rock School District.  Each school district is required to bring a minimum of 5 high school students and a maximum of 25 high school students who are interested in going into the field of special education. 

High school students will have the opportunity to hear from SRU students who are currently enrolled in special education programs, to learn about their experiences as students in SRU’s College of Education. Additionally, faculty will invite the admissions and student life staff to present about SRU tuition/financial aid, application requirements, student life, academics and more. The focus will be on why SRU is an outstanding place for teacher education, what it is like to be a student in SRU’s College of Education, and prospective job opportunities for SRU graduates from our special education programs.

Students from A.W. Beattie Career Center will be invited to Slippery Rock University to engage in a half day seminar with faculty and students attending Slippery Rock University Special Education program. During their time, they will hear from alumni teachers from the field of special education to share what it is like to be a teacher today and how their journey lead them to be a teacher. 

Students from A.W. Beattie Career Center will engage in discussion with the alumni whom are special education teachers and have the opportunity to ask questions. Students will then plan a mini lesson with the faculty, current students and alumni geared towards a high school life skills classroom. Then, students from a neighboring school district who are enrolled as students with disabilities in the life skills classroom will join the group with their teachers to then learn a new skill that was planned in the mini lesson with the postsecondary students. 

All postsecondary students will have help from the faculty, alumni teachers and their teachers while planning and implementing the lesson. The "lessons" will be very short and will focus on different topics like cooking, personal finance and preparing for a job interview.

Students  will participate in a "kick-off" session for the job shadowing opportunity in our school district.  This kick-off will be a half-day session at our district office in October or November.  Students will meet with a variety of professionals including, but not limited to, special education teachers, a school psychologist, a speech therapist, and an occupational therapist.  These professionals will explain their roles and how they specifically interact with and support the special education teachers and their students.  

The kickoff day will include a session on confidentiality for the students and a session on providing a good job shadow for the special educators.  In pairs, students will complete 5 rotations of job shadows to observe and learn about the varying levels of support we offer: learning support, autistic support, emotional support, life skills, and speech.  The job shadows will be scheduled 1 time per month from December to April and last about 2 hours each.

Individuals will be given the opportunity to shadow special educators, design lessons, engage in lessons, and deliver activities and instruction to students with their mentor's guidance. Individuals will also be given the opportunity to volunteer to organize educational materials, distribute materials, and create materials.

A new Rising Educators Club will bring together and grow STSD’s cadet students, future cadets, and those students who want to explore teaching as a career option. There will be two divisions, a middle school club that will focus on introducing students to the field of general and special education and a high school club that will delve into the many components of special education. 

Both clubs will join together for appropriate activities and special events.  While focused on career exploration, the club activities will combine all three of the grant categories to provide its members with a comprehensive learning experience. 

Susquehanna University (SU) will partner with Selinsgrove Area School District (SASD) to plan and implement a career fair, titled Special Education Discovery Fair. The Discovery Fair will be hosted on the campus of SU in Spring 2025 and Spring 2026. 

Project coordinator, Leigh Ann Kurz from SU and Ashley Whary, special education teacher from SASD will collaborate to plan and implement a special education career fair open to prospective students across the central Pennsylvania region to explore career options and career pathways in special education. Participants will have many opportunities to speak with teachers and professionals within the field of special education, as well as career counselors and university faculty to learn about career pathways.

The Watson Institute (“Watson”) will continue its partnerships with institutions of higher education (“IHE”) to serve as guest speakers to undergraduates in the fields of teaching, social work, psychology, speech & language pathology, occupational therapy, music therapy and physical therapy with the goal of inspiring these students to continue on the path or to enter the path of becoming special educators. 

A program director or educational consultant from Watson’s special education program, along with a human resources team member will be a guest speaker at partner IHEs each fall and spring semester, on a rolling basis.  Watson’s guest speakers will provide an overview of special education, disabilities served, requirements to be a special educator, and the tangible impact of working in the field of special education.

Through the Career Fair Pathways to Special Education, Watson’s program directors and human resources staff will engage with students considering a career in special education, as well as students who are studying in another field such psychology, social work, behavioral health, speech/language pathology, physical therapy, occupational therapy or are undecided.  Our method of engaging with these students is to provide students with the opportunity to talk one-on-one or in small groups with a program director.  The director will provide firsthand knowledge and experience to the students of the day-to-day experience of working in special education.

This opportunity focuses upon attracting secondary students to career pathways in Special Education through outreach activities in high schools within the Harrisburg region. Penn State Harrisburg multicultural recruitment professionals will go to high school campuses to share information and make presentations. Interested high school students will come to campus at Penn State Harrisburg for on campus experiential learning opportunities that include seminars with current special education teachers. This ELO will include information on career pathways in special education and eligibility requirements for admission into teacher certification and special education certification programs.

The goal of this specific ELO is to make students in Grades 9-11 who are interested in the Human Services Pathway and, potentially, in the field of education, aware of the variety of careers available in special education. For this guest speaker series, which would take place over lunches and tutoring to prevent interference with coursework, students would come to our LGI to hear from a total of 5 different speakers in the field of special education during the Fall Semester. 

The hope would be to take students who already have some interest in these pathways and make them more aware of the diverse options in special education. Hearing from professionals in the field, including not only our own special education staff, speech pathologists, and school psychologists, students would also learn from some external individuals who work in the field of special education to get perspective, experience, and variety. This speaker series would serve as a springboard for the ELOs during the second semester and beyond - a series of job shadowing experiences and college visits.

From the original group of students who participate in the speaker series, students who demonstrate marked interest in those career pathways would then be eligible during their second semester to engage in a series of classroom visits and/or formal job shadowing experiences. Both options would be available based on students' schedules, interests, and the nature of the roles that they are visiting. 

For this ELO, students would be tasked with selecting a minimum of three curated visit/shadowing experiences from a list of 10-12 options that would span the various career pathways in special education that they learned about in the speaker series. These visits, depending, again, on the nature of the role and availability of the student, would task them with visiting special education classrooms at various levels, and shadowing individuals with various special education roles. Students would be tasked with working with the guidance team and career teacher to identify their preferred visits/shadowing experiences based on their interests; students would be responsible for a series of reflection tasks that would be submitted via Schoology as a follow-up.

Students would have the opportunity to visit 1-3 PDE approved institutes of higher education during the Spring semester and/or the following Fall Semester, depending on their schedules, graduation dates, etc., allowing for a full year timeline for students to participate in this ELO with some flexibility. Students will select from a curated list of campus visits; transportation and supervision will be provided and coordinated by the program coordinator.

The purpose of this Waynesboro Area School District proposal and experiential learning opportunity is to promote inclusion, collaboration and meaningful experiences for both regular education students and special needs students at Waynesboro Area Senior High School. By engaging regular education students in supporting their peers with disabilities, WASHS aims to create a more inclusive and supportive school environment and encourage students to enter the field of special education. Through these efforts, we plan to provide enriching field trips to colleges with special education programs.  

Specifically, for this ELO, the project will include job shadowing, career events and field trips to Special Education Colleges. The ELO will encompass:

• Organizing field trips to regional special education colleges or vacation training centers                                                                    

• Arranging visits to classrooms, workshops and recreational facilities that work with people with disabilities.   

• Fostering career exploration and inspiration of regular education and special needs students at WASHS to purse high education and/or vocational training.   

 West Allegheny School District is increasing the internship options for students interested in becoming a future special educator. Students will also be provided the opportunity to job shadow special education teachers, related service providers and staff supporting students receiving special education services within the school year. Additionally, during the summer, students will be afforded internship opportunities during our district's Extended School Year (ESY) Program. These experiences will allow future special educators the chance to authentically explore the careers of special education teachers, speech-language pathologists, paraprofessionals, occupational therapists, physical therapists and school psychologists.