The Para Place

Early Bird Conference Registration Now Available

nrcpadmin — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 23:00:00 +0000

We have been preparing for the National Paraprofessional Conference in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on May 12th-14th, 2011 and now so can you.

The Early Bird Conference Registration is now open and offers significant savings over the regular priced tickets, take a moment to review the options for registration and signup today!

The conference will be held at the Sheraton Harrisburg Hershey Hotel in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Help Spread the Word

Please help us spread the news about the 2011 conference by by downloading this Save the Date document with some basics about the conference that you can share with anyone who might be interested.

Call for Papers now Available!

nrcpadmin — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 05:29:06 +0000

If you are interested in presenting a the 2011 NRCP Conference in Pennsylvania, the Call for Papers is now available. We are looking for presentations on the following topics:

Research Initiatives focusing on paraeducator effectiveness, training and supervision, one-on-one use of paraeducators, or other pertinent topics.

Statewide or local initiatives to set standards.

Hands on Sessions specifically designed to strengthen the on-the-job performance of paraprofessionals working in Title I programs, inclusive classrooms or one-on-one job assignments, home- and center-based early childhood programs, ALS/bilingual education, and vocational/transitional services.

Incentives for Retaining a Skilled Paraprofessional Work Force (e.g. career pathways, credentialing flexible degree programs, collaborative articulated systems between provider agencies and 2- and 4-year colleges).

Standards and professionally developed models for preparing teachers and other supervisors to work effectively with paraprofessionals and direct service providers in education and other human services.

Emerging Roles for Paraprofessionals in occupational, speech/language, physical therapy and other disciplines.

However, if you have an idea that is not on this list, we would still love to hear about it. From Call for Papers page, there is a link where you can submit your proposal online.

Proposals are due by Friday, August 27th, submit yours today!

Save the Date! (2011 National Conference)

nrcpadmin — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 17:10:04 +0000

The NRCP 2011 Paraprofessional Conference has been scheduled for:

May 12-14, 2011

At the Sheraton Harrisburg Hershey Hotel in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

The Call for papers will be posted soon and additional information will be forthcoming.

A First Year Teacher Finds a Hero in Her Paraeducator

nrcpadmin — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 13:00:00 +0000

A teacher named Tami recounts an experience from her first year of teaching:

My kids continued to grow and develop as learners in a happy and caring classroom community.

I cannot however, take credit for all their success.

I had a para educator who was in my classroom most of the day, specifically for 3 of my special needs kiddos.

Her name is Mrs. M.

She was my right hand gal. She was my sounding board, keeper of the peace, and most importantly my friend. It sounds silly, but I couldn't have done it without her! (And until you encounter the title of teacher in a multi-age class with 27 (and soon 29) kids... you don't know the full truth of that statement!)

She then goes on to tell us that Mrs. M was diagnosed with breast cancer:

Tests were taken, surgery performed, a breast removed, chemo started, and one very sick lady left behind.

My classroom wasn't the same without her. We all missed her.

Tami then tell us why she admires Mrs. M and declares her "my hero".

Thanks for sharing Tami!

First Year

100 Essential Blog Posts for the First-Year Teacher

nrcpadmin — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 13:00:00 +0000

We recently came across a post titled
100 Essential Blog Posts for the First-Year Teacher. While geared towards teachers, the list includes lots of great posts for anyone involved in education. Categories include Working with Student, Teaching, Classroom Management, Using Technology in the Classroom, Resources, Going Green in Schools, Education Reform and The Future of Education.

Going through the list we came across great posts such as Catch Them Doing the Right Thing and More Classroom Ideas for Old Fashioned Index Cards.

Do you have a blog where you talk about paraprofessional issues? If so, leave us a comment below!

100 Essential Blog Posts for the First-Year Teacher via Successful Teaching

(Also check out this list of 50 Amazing Videos Every Educator Should Watch)

Utah Paraeducator Honored

nrcpadmin — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 05:18:58 +0000

Spanish Fork Junior High (Utah) paraeducator Lesley Johnson was recently named the Nebo School District's Secondary Resource Paraeducator of the Year. From the article:

"I feel like I can't do my job without her," said Spanish Fork Junior High teacher Katrina Davenport. "She's so dedicated and devoted to helping people." Johnson said she's had students refer to her as "Mom." She said they've called out, "Hi Mom!" in the hallways.

Paraeducator and others honored

Announcement on the 2010 Conference

nrcpadmin — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 05:17:46 +0000

First, the bad news...

During the past several months we have heard from many individuals who have attended previous conferences and found that many states, districts, and national organizations are experiencing travel freezes and budget restrictions. Based on this and the current economic downturn, we have opted not to hold a 2010 conference. We want to thank everyone for their interest and support.

Now, the good news...

We are currently in the process of finalizing the dates and location of the 2011 Conference! We anticipate the Call for Papers being posted early in 2010. Stay tuned for more information.

PS

Although we are not holding the National conference in 2010, a number of states are still holding their state conferences. We are working on creating a calendar that will list all of these. If you know of a paraprofessional conference or training opportunity in your state then please let us know!

The Paraeducator Dilemna- on Making a Living Wage

Christopher Phillips — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 05:30:12 +0000

One of the most popular posts on our site is a discussion started by a para from Sioux City, Iowa asking what paraeducators make in different states. The 100 replies to that question show that there is a lot of interest in that area. If you enjoyed that discussion you will likely also appreciate a recent article titled The Paraeducator Dilemma about paraeducators in Yakima, Washington fighting for a living wage.

The entire article provides a great overview of the work that paraeducators do and some of the struggles that they face. Here are a few quotes to whet your appetite:

From Heidi Mann:

"At MLK, the teachers treat us like equals," Mann says. "We're not saying we are equal to them. But I'd say we're at least worth half of what they make."

The entire article provides a great overview of the work that paraeducators do and some of the struggles that they face. Here are a few quotes to whet your appetite:

From Heidi Mann:

"At MLK, the teachers treat us like equals," Mann says. "We're not saying we are equal to them. But I'd say we're at least worth half of what they make."

On working for a living wage:

While they're taking care of other people's children on the playground and in the school cafeteria, many paraeducators struggle to provide for their own children. Many of their children qualify to receive free or reduced lunch in the district for which they work.

"As far as we understand, we are the lowest-paid unit in the district, and we are the ones who are teaching in the classrooms," (Buffy) Phillips says. "We're not asking to be paid like the teachers are paid. We just need enough to live on."

On the work that paras do:

Paraeducators supervise children on the playground, in the lunchroom and classroom, and before and after school. They tutor students in math. They help children learn to read. They lead small groups. And while they don't craft lesson plans, paraeducators do help teach the lessons.

"I just really could not do my job without them," says Joan Kirk, a special education teacher at Gilbert Elementary School. "We're a team."

Does anything in the article sound familiar to you?

The Paraeducator Dilemma from the Yakima Herald

Caroline Hester- Mother, Paraprofessional and Breast Cancer Survivor

nrcpadmin — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 05:35:46 +0000

Channel WSAV in Savannah, Georgia highlights Caroline Hester:

The mother and paraprofessional who grew up on Isle of Hope is in the midst of a tough journey...

View the video of Caroline below:

Read the full article: Fight Breast Cancer And Depending On Faith
View a picture of Caroline reading to students in the classrom

Paraprofessional Pre-Service Program Improvement Grant Opportunity

Christopher Phillips — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 06:07:31 +0000

The U.S. Department of Education is offering $1.5 million for up to 10 Paraprofessional Pre-Service Program Improvement Grants. The purpose of the grant is to improve services and results for children with disabilities.

These grants are designed to help improve the quality of existing paraprofessional certificate or associate degree programs at colleges and universities. Institutions receiving support must enhance or re-design the program curricula so that paraprofessionals are well prepared to work with children with disabilities and their families.

There are two focus areas under this criteria, including:

Improvement of early intervention, early childhood special education, and early childhood education paraprofessional pre-service programs.
Improvement of K-12 paraprofessional pre-service programs

Note: The two focus areas under this priority only support the improvement of existing EI, ECSE, and ECE or K through 12 paraprofessional preservice programs. This priority does not support the development of new paraprofessional preservice programs, nor does it provide for financial support of paraprofessional students during any year of the project. Projects training paraprofessionals in other related services, speech/language or adapted physical education are not eligible under these focus areas.

The deadline for submission is November 3, 2009.

For more information please contact Shedeh Hajghassemali at 202-245-7506.

You can find a synopsis of this grant opportunity available here.

For the full Federal Register notice on the funding opportunity, please visit http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/E9-21436.htm

The Role of Para-educator

nrcpadmin — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 05:15:40 +0000

Introduction to a great article by Richard Finegan:

I have a degree in journalism, a law degree, and am only a few hours short of being certified as a mild-moderate special education teacher. So why am I working as a para-educator/classroom aide?

His answer?

Because I like being able to focus on the students. Only on the students. Not grading 150 of yesterday’s five-paragraph essays, or preparing tomorrow’s lessons, and especially not tolerating all that frustrating, annoying administrative stuff that teachers are expected to deal with.

Read the rest of the article here

Paraprofessional Thank you

nrcpadmin — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 12:30:00 +0000

I missed this when it was posted back in May, but it is good enough that it is still worth sharing. Below is a blog post where a kind teacher takes the time to publicly thank her two paraprofessionals at the end of the school year:

I am dedicating this blog post to my two Para-Professionals that I work with, Mrs. Rogers and Mr. Nelson. Both have made my year spectacular and I truly mean that I could not have made it without them.

Another Para-Professional Note

Paraprofessional Interview Questions

nrcpadmin — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:00:00 +0000

While gathering some information for the Are you a Paraprofessional Expert? post a few days ago, I came across a couple of questions where paraprofessionals were asking for advice on upcoming interviews:

After reading those, I was interested in finding out what other resources were available on paraprofessional interviews. This is what I found:

Paraprofessional Interview Questions A 7-page form used when interview paraprofessionals.
Sample Interview Questions for Para-Educators See page 8 of this Word document.
What should we ask and NOT ask during the interview?
How do I do a Getting Acquainted Interview?

Other Resources

Do you have any other ideas for good questions?

Paraprofessional Educator Entry on Wikipedia

nrcpadmin — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 05:00:00 +0000

Wikipedia now has an entry titled Paraprofessional Educator that begins:

A paraprofessional educator, alternatively known as para-pros, instructional assistants, teacher's aides or classroom assistants, is a teaching-related position within a school generally responsible for specialized or concentrated assistance for students in elementary and secondary schools.

Not all states have a fixed definition of 'paraprofessional' and may use all of the terms listed above interchangeably.

After that, the article could use some help- the good news is, you can change it! If you have an addition or idea to make the article better, just click on "edit this page" at the top of the page and start editing. If you need help, check out How to Edit Wikipedia pages. Once you have edited the document, press "Save page" and your changes will be live! (use responsibly)

Para News Roundup

nrcpadmin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 04:44:55 +0000

It's been awhile since we've done a roundup of para news...

About.com Answers a Very Important Question

Under ideal circumstances, having a certified, enthusiastic, well-prepared paraprofessional can make an enormous difference in the efficiency of your child's classroom and the implementation of your child's IEP.

What is a Paraprofessional?

Connecticut Layoffs

When New Haven’s schools open in a couple weeks, there will be 19 fewer assistant teachers in the classroom.

The layoffs were necessary to ensure that federal funding is not taken away, said Will Clark, chief operations officer for New Haven schools. Since the certification test is a requirement of the No Child Left Behind Act, feds could pull funding if uncertified teachers are working in the schools.

19 Assistant Teachers Laid Off

Advice to Teachers on Working with Paraprofessionals

Above all, treat your paraprofessional with dignity and respect. If an issue arises, talk about it, discuss it like two professionals. You both should be on same page from the beginning, and continue to communicate your needs and frustrations throughout the school year. Remember, you are a team.

How to get along and effectively utilize your paraprofessional

Georgia Car Accident

Victoria "Tori" Thompson, 30, died in a single-car accident around 3:15 p.m. Wednesday while driving home from Chicopee Woods Elementary School... She worked for the school system since 2005 and was a special education pre-K paraprofessional at Chicopee Woods.

Hall paraprofessional mourned

Do you have any news that we missed? Please Let us know!