This year-long course serves as an introduction to the field of special education. A focus on the nature and causes of disabilities will give students an overview of the needs of exceptional children. The entire range of disabilities will be introduced. The course will include both class instruction and community experiences.

This opportunity will award up to 5 students each spring of the two-year grant scholarships to participate in an online ASL course. Students will have the ability to elect to take the course for college credit hours or as a high school foreign language credit towards their high school graduation.   

Participating students will have the opportunity to select from a menu of online semester courses (beginning in January 2025) directly related to the field of special education to better develop and understand the prospective career opportunities in the field of special education and the skills that are necessary for each. Current courses include:

• ASL

• Early Childhood Education

• Teaching and Education

• Dual Enrollment: Foundations of Education

• Dual Enrollment: Intro to Special Education

Carlow University will host a symposium of experts in special education and dyslexia who will present on relevant topics and former NFL player, Dean Butler, will share his experience with dyslexia. Funding will also be provided to those students interested in attending the 2025 Council for Exceptional Children Conference (CEC).

The Annual Paraeducator Conference is a full-day professional development experience designed to support and enhance the skills of paraeducators and support staff within the CSIU region. This experiential learning opportunity provides a comprehensive and engaging platform for secondary students to immerse themselves in the world of special education and paraeducator roles. Secondary students attending the conference will partner with a professional paraeducator sponsor, providing them with a mentor for the day and a direct connection to the field. Participants will have the opportunity to attend:

• A Lunch and Learn with their sponsor

• The conference Keynote and breakout sessions with their sponsor

• A Reflection and Debrief meeting 

Secondary students will develop skills related to working with students who have communication needs utilizing communication boards that are placed strategically on the school playgrounds. Students would gain experience working with English and Spanish language tools designed for inclusivity and accessibility to playground equipment, needs, and relationship development for young students via post-secondary classwork and/or internships. 

Secondary students will have the opportunity to visit two community locations; Lancaster Science Factory and the Crayola Factory to learn from adaptive specialists and experience the adaptations provided for students with special needs while discovering the possibilities that exist within a classroom when the appropriate supports are provided. 

This opportunity will begin in March 2025 and be repeated in Spring 2026. 

Students will have the opportunity to co-create and co-present a conference poster or presentation at the 2026 PDE Special Education Conference (pending acceptance) with special education faculty. They will share how the spring break experience at Lindley Academy impacted their decision to pursue a career as a special educator. The goal would be to attract other colleges and schools to offer similar experiences in an effort to attract future special educators to the field. 

Secondary students will have opportunities to explore and learn about special education roles through the following classroom activities:

• Overview of career options using PaTTAN's Career Exploration Fact Sheets

• Video presentations and/or guest speakers at a minimum of 4x annually

• Campus tours

• Awareness of available opportunities to become involved such as Special Olympics, the Miracle League, and extended school year programming

These activities will culminate in a community presentation on special education pathways.

Dual enrollment courses will be offered to interested juniors and seniors who can earn college credit in the Fall, Spring, Winter, and Summer semesters of each year of the grant. 

APR Groups that were established in the Pocono Mountain School District West & East High Schools with the 2022-24 DFSE Grant will be formalized into Future Special Educators Clubs. The clubs will seek to grow their membership which currently stands at approximately 48 total students and meet monthly for instructional activities and presentations. 

EmpowerED to Teach provides an opportunity for collaboration that connects secondary students engaged in education, through district identified focused clubs and career preparation tracks, with strategy training, program information, and mentorship opportunities on the Commonwealth University - Bloomsburg campus. The goal is to create a meaningful opportunity that benefits high school students by engaging them in methods course experiences and empowering them with information about educator preparation programs. 

This opportunity will begin in September 2024 and occur at least once each academic year. 

This opportunity will focus on DeSales University undergraduate general education teacher candidates. In two separate courses, students will have the opportunity to hear from a guest speaker who is a practicing special educator,  prepare lessons and implement them with students who receive either elementary Autistic Support or secondary Life Skills Support, and reflect on these experiences in a culminating report.

University students will collaborate, plan, and deliver programming for young adults with disabilities who are participating in the Post-Secondary Lifelong Adapted Continuing Education Program (PLACE). Students will:

• learn about the PLACE program and how it benefits young adults who receive life skills and are transitioning from secondary education into the community,

• observe and assist with young adults with disabilities and their professional caregivers, and

• plan and implement learning activities in four content areas - World Cultures, Creative Writing, Math, and Science. 

An education career pathway for secondary students will be developed. During student's junior year they would participate in unified courses, and in senior year they would be eligible to enroll in a dual enrollment course, Introduction to Exceptionalities, at Elizabethtown College. . 

The Governor Mifflin School District has partnered with Kutztown University to develop a unique pathway for high school juniors and seniors who want to major in education with a specific emphasis on students who want to go into special education. Students will be transported or will drive to the Kutztown University campus where they will attend classes on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday specifically aimed at education and special education. On Tuesday and Thursday, the students will have an extended internship in a K-8 special education classroom. The students will receive high school credits for the internship. The district will also provide opportunities for the same students to participate in Extended School Year as interns, as well as continue their dual enrollment courses through the summer. In addition, students who are in the program for their junior and senior year can earn 12 college credits and are guaranteed admission into Kutztown University.

Volunteering during the Extended School Year program will allow students to support special educators in providing instruction and activities for students with disabilities outside the traditional school year. Volunteers will assist with lesson planning, classroom management, and direct student support. This experience will highlight the continuity of educational support needed for students with disabilities and the various strategies employed to maintain and enhance learning.

Students will participate in simulated classroom experiences in a model classroom on campus that will allow them to take part in lesson plan development, creation of materials that are universal designed to meet the needs of all learners, practice and prepare for upcoming certification tests, access electronic and hard copy versions of curriculum , test taking materials, teacher preparation materials and participate in trainings on culturally responsive classrooms, professional ethics and positive behavior supports. The activities and training materials will be a combination of self- initiated, seminar led by a faculty and supported by a peer tutor available throughout the year. 

Immaculata University will develop 3 asynchronous special education courses. The development of these courses will allow for them to be run through the dual enrollment partnership sites Immaculata University has in place.

High school students will be invited to attend the Pre-Service Teacher Conference to network with pre-service teachers and in-service teachers from across western Pennsylvania in a professional development setting. They will attend sessions focused on teaching students with special needs and learn how IUP’s pre-service teachers research and plan creative, innovative and effective learning experiences. 

Visits to districts and clubs to see how the skills and knowledge they are learning can be used beyond academics to help support students with disabilities. These activities will include: 

• Commons Cafe at Indiana Area School District

• The Titan Shoppe at West Mifflin Area School District

• Best Buddies and Special Olympics at River Valley School District 

High students who are part of the peer mentoring program have the opportunity to enroll as dual enrollment students in one of the two large lecture sections of SPEE 201: Cognitive Development of Exceptional Learners in a Standards-Aligned System. This is an introductory course that serves as a prerequisite course and foundational learning for all subsequent courses. 

• The course covers the history of special education, special education processes and procedures, the laws covering special education, and characteristics and lived experiences of individuals with disabilities that fall under the IDEA 2004 disability categories.

• Due to distance, high school students will attend classes remotely. The Special Education Department graduate assistant will attend and monitor the Zoom during each class session, ensuring that the dual enrollment high school students are actively involved in the class, have their questions answered, and gain a sense of belonging and community.

Midwestern Intermediate Unit IV’s Teachers of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing will provide instruction on American Sign Language (ASL), the history of ASL, myths about deaf people, professionals who support deaf education,  options for work environments in the field of deaf education, and internet and social media as it relates to the deaf experience.  Students who join the Deaf Education Club will participate every month beginning in January of each program year.

The high school is opening a WIN (What I Need) area.  It will be staffed each period with a general education teacher, a special education teacher, and a gifted teacher.  The purpose of the WIN room is to offer a variety of services and supports to all students so that they are getting all the assistance they need to achieve within the educational environment. There will be opportunities for interventions and enrichment to occur.  Further, the high school's Entrepreneurship class, Digital Arts class, and the Life Skills classes (among others) will work together collaboratively to setup and operate a school store within a designated part of the library.  Our district fully embraces inclusive opportunities for students with disabilities.  This partnership will only promote additional opportunities for all of our students.

Students will be provided the option of enrolling in dual-enrollment courses in introductory special education courses offered by a local university to receive college credit towards their future degree and experience what it is like to receive post-secondary education.

Students will be provided with introductory learning experiences in the field of special education through an American Sign Language course and attendance at state and national conferences. Local instructors will teach a minicourse (5-8 sessions) on ASL. Students will attend the PDE conference and the national CEC conference in Baltimore, 2025.

Future Educators will visit an elementary school (within the district)  three times a year to read a book and complete a seasonal craft with various grades in the special education classrooms. Additionally, the future educators will have opportunities to visit college campuses to see what programs are available at the collegiate level.

Pocono Mountain School District has created Future Educators Clubs in all K-12 schools to spark an interest in the field of education. Students interested in special education will have the opportunity to work directly with students with disabilities in various classrooms and programs. Future special educators will:

• Attend trainings and workshops hosted by the district and CIU20.

• Participate in simulation activities and receive PATTAN materials that focus on key topics related to the field of special education, such as IDEA, Presumed Competence, People’s First Language, Universal Design for Learning, and the Framework for Access and Belonging. 

• Be paired with mentor teachers and work with them throughout the school year. 

• Support students at various events, including Special Olympics and Unified Sports, and the buddy tutoring program.  

• Work directly with members of Future Educators Clubs in the younger grade levels at the junior high, intermediate, and elementary levels to attract interest in working with students with disabilities. 

This ELO will provide a 3-day opportunity for current Point Park education students and faculty to work with local high school students interested in exploring becoming special education teachers. During this three-day experience participants will engage directly with students with special needs and their teachers.

The dual enrollment opportunity with Kutztown University of Pennsylvania will allow students to gain experience with special education strategies while still being enrolled in high school. The high school students will be able to earn college credits that will count toward their education degree ultimately providing more opportunities for entering the special education profession upon graduation

Participating students will spend an allotted amount of time (depending upon student availability) in special education classrooms. When in the classrooms, the students will perform duties assigned to them by the cooperating teacher. Students will assist in community-based instruction activities with the special education teacher and the students. Throughout this process, students will gain knowledge and experience in working with students with disabilities

Students who enroll in our Unified Career Exploration Course will gain the skills and knowledge needed in order to walk alongside individuals with disabilities and will have the opportunity to engage with individuals with disabilities on a daily basis. As they explore their own possible careers in special education, they will work one-on-one with individuals with disabilities who are engaging in hands-on activities focused on job skills and their own career exploration as well as independent living skills. 

Students will work together in our mock apartment, skills lab, and family consumer science kitchens to learn skills related to the fields of maintenance/janitorial, factory/warehouse, clerical, household, clerical, culinary arts, sales/marketing and other careers. General education students will take time daily to reflect on their experiences and ask questions and in turn, teachers will provide feedback, all through a journaling system.

In partnership with St. Francis University, students interested in a teaching career will complete core district courses during the first part of the academic day, and the second half of the academic day will be dedicated to CIHS education courses. An important component of the program affords students experiential learning opportunities in district-operated classrooms (Pre-K - 12th grade) based on the student's area of interest. During the three-year program (10th-12th grades), students will take up to three college-level education preparatory classes each semester of our two-semester system.  Students will have the chance to obtain 36 education-specific college credits upon high school graduation. 

A college in high school course through Carlow University will be offered in the course of study at Riverside High School. This 3 credit courses titled, Foundations of Special Education. This course serves as an introduction to the field of special education. Included among the topics addressed are the history of special education, its legal and legislative foundation and the purpose of the IEP its development and requirements for implementation. A focus on the nature and causes of Disabilities will give students an overview of the needs of exceptional children.

The ELO is for undergraduate students to serve as tutors to high-need striving kindergarten through second-grade students in urban schools using an evidence-based structured literacy curriculum within a high-dose one-to-one modality.  Tutoring sessions can occur virtually via Zoom, face-to-face, or in a hybrid of both modalities.  Elementary students are students who have been identified as needing more intensive instruction and will include students with language and learning disabilities as well as students with speech and language impairment and intellectual disabilities. 

The Schuylkill Valley School District is embarking on a unique partnership with Kutztown University.  The program will have SVSD students spend three morning per week on the actual KU campus taking courses, specifically aimed at education and special education.  

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, our HS students in the program will have an extended internship in an elementary or middle school special education classroom, or a special education classroom in a nearby district.  They will receive HS credits for the internship which will be 2-3 periods long.  The District will also provide opportunities for the students to participate in ESY as interns and students will be able to continue their dual enrollment in the summers.   

In addition, students who are in the program for their junior and senior year can earn 12 college credits and are guaranteed admission into KU.   We have also worked with KU to then return those students to our school in their sophomore year for their first student observation series, then again in their junior year for their prosem and then again for student teaching. Our hope is to create a continuous pipeline that starts in grade 11 and supports students directly into the field of special education.

Selinsgrove Area School District (SASD) is partnering with Susquehanna University on the proposed grant to develop future special educators. The project director for SU will collaborate with the project director from SASD to create and implement an instructional experiential learning opportunity (ELO) that includes a 4-credit dual enrollment course titled, Introduction to Exceptionalities: Dual Enrollment/ Dual Campuses, that will include students from the SASD learning alongside SU students. 

For this ELO, students from A.W. Beattie Career Center will have the opportunity to partner with SRU’s Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) to plan and execute a sensory friendly event for families and their children with disabilities  in a local school district.

Commonwealth University is preparing to partner with the school district to offer SPEC110: Introduction to Individuals with Exceptionalities.  This course will be offered synchronously online, meaning students will have access to a live instructor.  Students will have the option to take this course in the spring or summer at the early college rate.  The grant will cover the cost of the dual enrollment course. 

Susquehanna University (SU) is partnering with Selinsgrove Area School District (SASD) on the proposed grant to develop future special educators. This experiential learning opportunity (ELO) that includes a 4-credit dual enrollment course titled, Introduction to Exceptionalities: Dual Enrollment/ Dual Campuses, will include students from the SASD learning alongside SU students.  

The course will include approximately 12 high school students (junior or senior level standing) and 12 university students (non-special education majors with first year or sophomore standing, for a maximum of 24 students. Our vision for this course is to enroll high school students who have expressed in interest in special education and SU students who are non-special education majors (i.e., students majoring in early childhood, secondary education, psychology, sociology, members of Best Buddies), but want to explore the field of special education. 

Through the Supervised Learning Experience Program, students immerse themselves in a comprehensive learning experience tailored to fostering inclusivity and support for individuals with disabilities.  Students begin by selecting one of Watson’s schools, choosing a program that aligns with their areas of interest and disabilities served. Watson offers four (4) APS school locations located in diverse communities in Allegheny County.   The Supervised Learning Experience Program (SLE) offers:

• Orientation to the special education program at the school, providing a unique perspective of the programming offered through an APS;

• Overview of roles;

• Job shadowing;

• Observations;

• Providing classroom support in a supervised setting

• Overview of specific instructional models with hands-on participation;

• Supervisor coaching and conversations;

• Engagement with classroom teachers to learn classroom management; 

• Team meeting participation;

• Overview of and participation in IEP development & implementation.

The proposed experiential learning opportunity will impact the shortage of Special Education teachers by developing and implementing a College in High School dual-enrollment course equivalent to TLL 1580 Foundations of Special Education offered at the University of Pittsburgh.  Special Education faculty will design the course and work with high school special education teachers to implement the course in high schools across Pennsylvania.  Foundations of Special Education (or an equivalent) is a required course in teacher education programs.  The dual-enrollment course will provide an opportunity of 3 credits towards a teacher preparation program and engagement to topics of special education with exposure to the impactful and fulfilling careers of special education teachers.       

The course is intended as an introductory-level survey of exceptionality focusing on special education school programs.  An important focus of the class is learning about the experience of disabilities from individuals with disabilities, much of the course material is first person learning experiences, allowing students to learn from individuals with disabilities and their families through videos, podcasts, authentic engagement opportunities and readings.

Special Education guest speakers will be invited to classes in our introductory education courses to share their personal and professional experiences with undergraduate students. As special education teachers, individuals with disabilities, and family members the speakers will provide unique and personal perspectives on the field of special education and the impact of exceptional special educators.  The guest speakers will be provided a parking pass and small stipend to facilitate their participation.

This club will be designed to provide opportunities for students interested in the field of education so they may experience opportunities to work with students with disabilities and receive information regarding educator preparation programs. An emphasis will be placed on dual-certification in general education and special education as well as opportunities for students to visit in special programs classrooms around the district (AS, MDS, ES, Life Skills, Transition Programming).  Students in the Future Educators Club will have the opportunity to support special education programs in community-based learning opportunities and special activities.

Students who complete the semester 1 course (Introduction to Careers in Education) at WVSD will be eligible for dual enrollment course tuition assistance.

The mission of the Teacher Intern Program is to provide high school students with classroom and field experiences that will enable them to make informed decisions regarding careers in education.                             

Students will participate in a semester one course "Introduction to Careers in Education" while simultaneously completing internship hours in our classrooms.  Students will be eligible by registering for the course and completing an interview with the principal and superintendent.  During the second semester, student will continue with their classroom experiences and be eligible to complete dual enrollment courses.  The grant funding will be used, in part, to provide tuition for students.