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UGA workshop supports school-age children with disabilities

ATHENS, Ga. – Families of children with disabilities, schoolteachers, and administrators in the Athens area are invited to a creative workshop to support school-age children with disabilities. The event is slated for Dec. 6 at the River’s Crossing Building, 850 College Station Rd., Athens.

Titled “Schools and Families Together for Children,” the workshop is one of a “Dialogue on Disabilities” series sponsored by the Institute on Human Development and Disability (IHDD), a unit of the College of Family and Consumer Sciences at the University of Georgia. Sign-in and continental breakfast start at 8:30 a.m.; the workshop will run to 1 p.m.

“The program evolved from requests by parents and educators, and our own community advisory council, for more opportunities for information sharing as our children move from primary school through high school and into the community,” said coordinator Sherry Lee. “The information is essential for those parents of children with an Individual Education Plan (IEP).”

The keynote presentation will highlight progress of the Parent Leadership Support Project developed by the statewide Georgia Advocacy Office. Concurrent sessions will include family/professional partnerships and student/teacher involvement, maintaining the IEP, friendships through recreation and leisure activities, and the progress of Project WINS (a model program for inclusive schools). Among the presenters are UGA and school district educators, and parents of children with disabilities.

“The workshop includes much interaction by all participants,” said Lee. “It serves those parents who want their children with disabilities to be successful learners and contributors alongside their peers. It also serves teachers and administrators who want to share their perspective on the education of children with disabilities and who seek a greater understanding of the contributions that students and parents can make to a student’s success.”

The workshop is free but registration is required by Dec. 1. To register, contact Kate Smith at 706/583-0081 or by e-mail at kbsmith@uga.edu.