2014-15 Membership & E-Mail Sign-Up SEPTA is a Special Education Parent Teacher Association created to provide a consistent and unified voice in our school district and is geared specifically to meets the needs of, and provide resources to, families who have children with special learning or emotional needs. Our mission is to support parents, teachers and caregivers. What makes this SEPTA organization unique is that it is district wide and provides one forum for all families from preschool through age 21. Meetings provide educational information on current medical research, insights on interventions and methodologies, as well as new requirements that all families need to understand to effectively advocate for their children.
Annual Membership dues are $35 per family. You can either pay by check or by using PayPal on our website, www.pvillesepta.com Make checks payable to Pleasantville SEPTA and mail to: Pleasantville SEPTA P.O. Box 428 Pleasantville, NY 10570-0428
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Parent Name(s):_________________________ Phone # _________________ Email(s): _________________________________________________________ Street Address: ___________________________________________________ Do you have a Facebook or Twitter account that we can friend/follow? Y/N Facebook Address_____________________ Twitter ___________________ Your Email/Facebook/Twitter address will be used only for SEPTA communications.
Thank you for your support!
For those of you who don’t know what SEPTA is all about, here’s a summary of our special events, community programs and recent accomplishments from the 2013-14 school year. MOVING ON: PREPARING STUDENTS WITH ASD AND LEARNING DIFFERENCES FOR COLLEGE: SEPTA hosted this day long conference held at PACE University-Pleasantville to a sold out audience of parents, students and educators. Skill development, diploma options, programs and supports and accommodations were some of the topics addressed to help students prepare to navigate the college world successfully. Powerhouse speakers Dr. Fred R. Volkmar of Yale Child Study Center, Kathleen Koenig, MSN, Jane Thierfeld Brown, EdD, Julie Wolf, PhD, Virginia Hodge MA, Roger Jou, MD and Mary Riggs-Cohen, Carolyn McGuffog, PhD and Sheryl Frishman, Esq. presented during this information packed seminar. SEPTA PARENT NETWORKING EVENT FOLLOWED BY AN EVENING WITH AUTHOR, PRISCILLA GILMAN: SEPTA hosted a lovely evening beginning with a networking event for parents to enjoy conversation and refreshments followed by a presentation by Priscilla Gilman, author of “The Anti-Romantic Child”, a memoir which explores our hopes and expectations for our children, our families and ourselves and how experience sometimes leads us to re-imagine them and embrace the unexpected. SEPTA CO-SPONSORS COLLEGE PREP PROGRAMs WITH PLEASANTVILLE HIGH SCHOOL: Our SEPTA and the Pleasantville High School PCO teamed up to co- sponsor the Kaplan Test Prep & Catalyst SAT Boot camp at PHS. Hundreds of our students were better prepared to take the College Board tests. SEPTA “TOYS 4 TOTS” COLLECTION A HUGE SUCCESS! – Close to 70 beautiful toys were collected by parents, staff and community members at the Bedford Road School. Many thanks to the BRS PTA for their support! SPECIAL EVENT AT THE JACOB BURNS FILM CENTER: DAD’S IN HEAVEN WITH NIXON: An wonderful night featuring the film, “Dad’s in Heaven with Nixon”, a true story of triumph and tragedy of a family across three generations, followed by a discussion by Dr. Catherine Lord, Director of the Center for Autism and the Developing Brain in White Plains. This film is available at the Mt. Pleasant Library. SEPTA INDIEGOGO CAMPAIGN: SEPTA raised $4,000.00 during our 2013-14 campaign! Through our Wish List initiative, we were able to donate; 3 iPads, books, games, beanbag chairs, electronics, and iTunes cards for the download of apps for BRS, PMS, PHS and LAB educators. A drum set was also donated to PMS through a private donation! Many thanks to all our generous donors! KIDS IN THE SYNDROME MIX: A MEDICAL AND LEGAL PERSPECTIVE: This collaborative workshop presented by Dr. Martin Kutcher and Sheryl Frishman, Esq., provided a unique opportunity to gain a medical and legal perspective of these often misunderstood children in order to help them achieve success in school and at home. This event was sponsored by the Pleasantville SEPTA and Littman Krooks LLP. UNDERSTANDING THE COMMON CORE: Our Director of Educational Services, Dr. Carolyn McGuffog, lead an important discussion about the NYS Common Core standards and their impact students, both with and without learning and developmental challenges. TH
RELAX AND RENEW: OUR 4 ANNUAL SEPTA WINTER SPA NIGHT FUNDRAISER: Parents and teachers of children with special needs don’t often take time out to relax and renew. Our annual February Salon Night is always a great chance to relax with friends and recharge before the winter break. Thank you Tiffany Nail Salon for hosting each year! ONGOING INITIATIVES: Our SEPTA continues to partner with the Mt. Pleasant Library to support and expand the amazing SEPTA Parenting Collection of extensive book/multi-media resources at the library. SEPTA was also able to support the efforts of the Pleasantville Fund for Learning by facilitating the donation of both a trumpet and a violin to PMS! What’s to come in 2014-15? The possibilities are endless. Get involved and make a difference in your child’s life and in your community. Join SEPTA this year! Go to www.pvillesepta.com for more info or to contact us.
www.pvillesepta.com