SERC Scoop | September 2020 Edition

OK State Dept of Ed sent this bulletin at 09/17/2020 12:00 PM CDT

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September 2020

What is SERC?

The Special Education Resolution Center of OSU (SERC) has been collaborating with the Oklahoma State Department of Education for over 10 years to help families and school districts resolve conflicts at the earliest stage possible. SERC provides services for children from birth to 3 in SoonerStart and for students 3 through 21 in public schools.

What does SERC provide to schools, SoonerStart, and families at no cost?

Training on communication and collaboration skills to help prevent conflict.
An IEP Facilitator to manage conflict during contentious IEP meetings.
A Mediator to guide a structured process in which parents and school personnel can resolve specific issues related to special education.
A Due Process Hearing Officer at an administrative hearing to resolve, what could not be resolved at an earlier stage. During the resolution time of the process, SERC can provide a facilitator to help the parties discuss the hearing issues in a safe and structured setting and try to resolve them if possible.

SERC's New Website is Live!

SERC has a new website. Over the past several months we’ve been designing a new web site that has now been launched! The new site is more user friendly and contains Spanish translations of important documents, with more to come. Please check out our new site at https://okserc.org/ .

Great Distance Learning Resources for Parents and Educators

Beginning this unusual time of distance learning, parents and educators have made huge adjustments for the learning of the students they share. If parents or educators are searching for additional information that could be helpful during this time, www.understood.org is a fabulous resource. It’s a fun place to explore for all kinds of information. Understood website link.

In addition to the the website resource listed above, here are several documents that might be helpful for those who will be participating in online meetings.

Download “Helpful Hints for using Zoom for Remote Mediations” (PDF)
Download “Zoom Online-Mediation Considerations” (PDF)

Virtual Mediation and IEP Facilitation

IEP facilitations and mediations are taking place now through online-video format with Zoom. This platform works well for facilitating meetings throughout the state of Oklahoma. To participate, you will need a computer/iPad/smartphone with WIFI and a place to meet without interruptions. Participants can also access by phone. An IPad with hot spot can be provided for use at no cost for those without access to a computer and/or WIFI. Contact SERC for more information about scheduling a virtual meeting.

Crucial Conversations Training Update

Crucial Conversations is a nationally recognized training that helps people have difficult conversations that they are afraid to have or that aren’t going well. And the focus of the training is not just about communication – it’s about helping people get the results they want and need.

Crucial Conversations can help you in your conversations with:

School administrators
Staff and personnel including general ed teachers
Services resource providers
IEP team members
Parents and their advocates

Because of travel restrictions related to COVID-19, we are not able to offer in-person classes at this time. However, we now have a virtual format available using Adobe Connect that is very effective. It consists of five, 2-hour long sessions that can be scheduled over two days or one session at a time.

Crucial Conversations is available at no costs to those attending through our partnership with the Oklahoma State Department of Education. If you are interested in scheduling a future training for your district, please contact our offices at (888) 267-0028 or contact Rob Keiter at rob.keiter@okstate.edu.

View the Crucial Conversations Online Course Agenda here.

Which Dispute Resolution Process is best for me?

You may be wondering which dispute resolution process would be the best for you when dealing with special education-related disputes. This dispute chart will help you understand the differences between the three processes offered in Oklahoma. Each of these processes is offered at no cost to schools or parents. Please contact us with any questions related to our dispute resolution processes. We can help you decide which process will work the best for your situation.

View the English version of the dispute resolution chart here:
View the Spanish version of the dispute resolution chart here:

Upcoming Events

Tech Thursdays with ABLE Tech (FREE monthly Zoom Session)

Join ABLE Tech for live Zoom training covering various tips for accessibility.

Apps for Early Childhood: October 15
Practical Caregiving for Alzheimer’s and Dementia: November 19
ABLE Tech Calendar of Events

Jo Anne Blades, Program Manager

Special Education Resolution Center (SERC)

Oklahoma State University Sponsored Program

9726 E 42nd Street, Suite 203 | Tulsa, OK 74146

Phone: 918.270.1849

Oklahoma ABLE Tech

Oklahoma State University

1514 W. Hall of Fame

Stillwater, OK 74078

Phone: 800.257.1705

Email: abletech@okstate.edu

Special Education Services
Oklahoma State Department of Education
2500 North Lincoln Boulevard, Suite 412
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73105
P: (405) 521-3351 F: (405) 522-2380
SDESpecialEducation@sde.ok.gov

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