SENIA Expands Worldwide
By Lori Boll
In the last few months, well established local chapters such as Thailand, Beijing, and Malaysia put on conferences serving 80-120 members of their communities. New chapters in Cambodia and Vietnam held their first meetings, and SENIA Japan formed a new board.
SENIA Vietnam’s first meeting In 2002 a small group of special educators met at an international school in Beijing, China, to determine ways to advocate for children with learning differences. They named themselves SENIC (Special Education Network In China) and began holding annual gatherings for teachers, parents, and professionals in the area of special education. Eventually, they expanded throughout Asia and renamed themselves SENIA (Special Education Network in Asia). From this humble beginning, SENIA has expanded in many directions. EARCOS and SENIA partnered to hold joint conferences every three years. This helps extend the reach of the SENIA mission to all teachers in the EARCOS region, and the EARCOS organization has been a tremendous support to the group. Last year, SENIA broadened its reach outside of Asia, making it a worldwide organization with regional chapters in South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. While the organization grew globally, it also strengthened roots in Asia and beyond with more local chapters coming on-line. These 19 local chapters are doing remarkable work in their communities from holding conferences to hosting provider fairs and running parent support group meetings.
The SENIA Doha chapter recently hosted a provider fair. Selina Collins of the Doha board explained, “...Members had the opportunity to meet with new service providers, ask questions about specific services, and connect with organizations (and members) who can provide in-school support for underserved students.” The expansion also extended into the schools with the growth of the SENIA Teacher Representative initiative. This initiative launched in 2016 with the vision that these representatives would be the conduit linking the SENIA Board with their respective schools.Three years later, 101 schools have recognized the importance of this role, and it has transformed from being an information source to someone who advocates and connects their schools with SENIA International, SENIA Local Chapters, and inclusive PD in the region. Kate Balsamo, the chairperson of the SENIA board, remarks, “Our SENIA TR’s continually advocate for the needs of diverse learners, and they are committed to advancing best practices in education for all students.” Tanya Farrol attended the very first meeting in Beijing and is now a board member of SENIA. “From this grassroots beginning, SENIA emerged and has maintained its vision and mission over the past 17 years. It has been thrilling to be part of SENIA’s growth and development of fostering inclusive practices around the world.” SENIA’s next annual conference will be February 21-23rd at the International School Manila. If you are interested in becoming part of the inclusive movement in international schools, this would be a great place to start. For more information, go to the SENIA website. www.seniainternational.org SENIA’s Vision:
To live in an inclusive world where every individual is supported, resources are accessible, potential is maximized, and action is inspired. SENIA Board Members: Uwe Maurer, Kate Balsamo, Lori Boll, Tanya Farrol, Brenda Dean, and Priscilla Leighton. 36 EARCOS Triannual Journal
