Florida Educators of Students who are Deaf/Hard of Hearing (FEDHH)
2015-2016 Teacher of the Year is Michelle Downing

Michelle is an itinerant teacher in St. Johns County (SJCSD). She established a DHH Learning Strategies Class at the high school level as well as initiated and facilitated the SJCSD DHH Family Picnic, which is now an annual event. For the past two years she was involved in the planning and facilitation of the Northeast Florida DHH Roundtable. She is on the team responsible for the inaugural DHH Vocabulary Competition called DEAFinition. Michelle also provides afterschool tutoring to some of her students and works with an academic competitive team called High Q to ensure it is accessible for Deaf Students. Michelle is one of nine itinerant teachers piloting Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing Expanded Core Curriculum (ECC) lesson plans as part of the Florida National Deaf Agenda Transition Team. She is an incredible leader and well deserving of this honor!

DeafEd Twitter Chat

The next #DeafEd Twitter Chat will be Thursday, March 3rd at 7:30 pm Eastern. The topic is Early Intervention and Guest Hosts are Kaitlin StackWhitney @KStackWhitney and Naomi @standUpAB

TA Live! - FSA ELA Listening Components: ASL as an Accommodation

Join us for TA Live on March 10th at 1:00.  We will provide you with a walk through of the ASL accommodation of the Listening Components for the FSA. Watch and learn how to navigate through the practice stimulus to familiarize your students with the ASL accommodation to prepare for the FSA. Tamika Brinson of FLDOE's Bureau of K-12 Assessment will be our special guest. Login at http://connect.fsdb.k12.fl.us/rmtc

FSDB's The Wizard of Oz

The FSDB Film The Wizard of Oz has reached more than one-million views. This file was produced by the FSDB Deaf Elementary Eyes Alive! performing arts troupe. Watch any of the FSDB productions at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCC7802F560A7BF19

New Resource from the Clerc Center!

Early Intervention Network: Supporting Linguistic Competence for Children Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing

"This on-line network shares five evidence-based factors and supporting program components shown to be essential for the development of linguistic competence in children who are deaf or hard of hearing. Various programs implementing these factors from throughout the country are highlighted."

New CID Online Courses Available for CEU Credits!

CID-Central Institute for the Deaf has recently expanded their professional development program, and has produced some very high quality on-line courses that offer CEUs as well. One of their new on-line professional development courses is for professionals working with deaf and hard-of-hearing children. The course is high-quality, open-captioned, and would be beneficial for other professionals working with this population, too. They even have embedded video demonstrating the use of tools or strategies in the classroom.
 
And it's affordable! Each course is about 30 minutes and costs $19 for individual use. Contact them for group pricing. See flyer for more information.

QuickClass registration is now open for the March 21 - May 1, 2016 session. Space is limited, so be sure to register early. Registration will close March 16 or when a class is full.

QuickClasses are six week, asynchronous, online training opportunities. Participants can choose their preferred time during the week to work online to meet weekly deadlines. They can expect to spend approximately 5 hours a week completing the required work. Most classes are pre-approved for RID and CRCC continuing education credit. They are free of charge.

The following classes will be offered:

• Interpreting for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Individuals with Additional Disabilities
• Mentoring Interpreters in the Postsecondary Environment
• Making Sense of Hearing Assistive Technology
• Ethical Considerations for Interpreters
• Ethical Considerations for Speech-to-Text Providers
• Ethical Considerations for Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors
• Ethical Considerations for Disability Service Professionals

For more information go to: http://www.pepnet.org/quickclasses/schedule

To register, go to http://www.pepnet.org/quickclasses  (Note: New users will need to create a pn2 account prior to registering for QuickClasses at http://www.pepnet.org/user/register).

If you have a question about QuickClasses, please contact Cindy Camp.
 
For more information about pepnet 2, please contact help@pepnet.org or go to http://www.pepnet.org 

This program provides financial assistance to paraprofessionals who work with children with special needs to obtain a bachelor's degree in special education, deaf education, or visual disabilities. For information about the program, application forms and instructions, go to http://www.florida-ese.org/paratoteacher/index.aspx. For questions, contact Dr. Robert Markowitz.

Equitable Access for Deaf or Hard of Hearing Students: Understanding Legal Responsibilities for Institutions

This resource is for professionals who want a better understanding of the legal foundations in serving students who are deaf or hard of hearing. Disability law attorneys and experienced practitioners explain institutional responsibilities and provide tips for implementing policies and procedures.

http://pepnet.org/equitable-access