Parent Education Network

Introduction

In recent years, PEN has arranged and participated in presentations and online webinars on special education topics. To give those presentations new life to reach a wider audience, PEN is making recordings available through this website and PEN's YouTube channel. Some videos have been released by other organizations and may be linked here for convenience.

For best results, ensure that you have downloaded and installed the latest version of Adobe Flash Player, and that you have not turned off JavaScript in your browser. Most videos have English captions.

Presentation and Webinar List by Year

2012

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  Other Health Impairments (OHI)In this webinar, Attorney Jelley begins with a review of Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and Section 504 service agreements. He explains how the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) defines other health impairments (OHI), and he reviews how students with other health impairments can qualify for IEPs or Section 504 service agreements. He also looks at some of the unique educational needs that may need to be addressed for students with other health impairments, such as managing flare-ups and crisis situations.
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  Fostering and Teaching True Independence: Fading Supports When AppropriateIn this recorded webinar, Brenda Kauffman defines fading and discusses how fading supports can build a foundation for independent living and community participation. She highlights the partnerships between parents, paraeducators, educational team members and students in identifying, defining, implementing and fading supports. In addition, she discusses the importance of building independent functioning throughout a child's life. Brenda also discusses the pros and cons of one-to-one support when building independence in school, community and work settings.

2011

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  FAPE Requirements Under Section 504In this webinar, Attorney Jelley reviews how Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act applies to education in Pennsylvania. He looks at what protections are offered by Section 504, how students are determined to be eligible, the responsibilities that local education agencies (LEAs) have, and what dispute resolution options are available. Throughout the webinar, he also compares and contrasts Section 504 with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
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  Harassment and Bullying 101In this webinar, Attorney Ruder presents some practical ways for parents to address the harassment and bullying of children with disabilities. He begins with an overview of how special education law in Pennsylvania relates to harassment and bullying. Later, he discusses school district harassment policies, and how they can help parents resolve situations. Finally, he gives further recommendations for handling bullying situations, and gives two additional methods for filing complaints. Throughout the presentation, Attorney Ruder also answers specific questions from audience members.
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  Exploring Careers, Colleges and Scholarships with educationplanner.orgIn this webinar, Marla Kane showcases educationplanner.org, a website from the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA). The EducationPlanner website provides and organizes resources on education topics. Some of the website's features include self-assessments, career planning tools, information on preparing for various levels of education, tools for locating schools and techniques to reduce the costs of education.
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  Free Appropriate Public Education Under Section 504In this webinar, Attorney Jelley compares the federal and Pennsylvania regulations covering Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) to the regulations for FAPE under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

2010

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  Alternative Methods to Resolving DisputesIn this webinar, Attorney Jelley examines several options in Pennsylvania for resolving special education disputes. For each option, Attorney Jelley explains the option's purpose, which outside parties are involved, who decides the outcome of the process, and what the costs and deadlines are. Throughout the webinar, he also offers suggestions for dealing with the other parties who become involved in a dispute.
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  Including Assistive Technology in the IEPIn this webinar, Amy Goldman discusses how the requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) apply to assistive technology. She also talks about methods of including assistive technology (both devices and services) in Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).