Pupil Personnel Services

Pupil Personnel Services
KAM Administrative Annex
90 Avenue C
Port Washington, NY 11050
516-767-4900
Fax: 516-767-4919

The Pupil Personnel Services department is responsible for the provision of Special Education, Section 504, and Nursing services for the students of Port Washington. The department is also responsible for the implementation of home instruction services and IHIPs for students who are home schooled by their parents.

Department Personnel

Stephanie Allen, Psy.D. Assistant Superintendent of Pupil Personnel Services

Email Stephanie Allen, Psy.D. 516-767-4900
Dale Bennett Assistant Director of Pupil Personnel Services

Email Dale Bennett
Cristi McAleer Assistant Director of Pupil Personnel Services

Email Cristi McAleer

Greg Silak

Special Education Chair at Weber Middle School

Stephanie Mesbah

Special Education Chair at Schreiber High School

Dr. Alisa Stein

District Psychologist

CPSE

The responsibility of the Committee on Preschool Special Education (CPSE) is to determine if students ages 3-5 are eligible for special education services. A child can be referred to the CPSE only by his/her parents. CPSE evaluations are usually conducted in the areas of cognition, speech/language, social/emotional functioning, adaptive functioning, and motor development.

Your child must be registered with Port Washington UFSD in order to be referred to CPSE. Once your child is registered, an intake meeting with PPS will be scheduled to discuss the process in detail. Evaluations take place only after written permission is obtained. The CPSE meets once to review the evaluations in order to determine if the child is eligible for special education services. At that meeting, the child's strengths and needs are discussed. If it is determined that the child is eligible, the child’s Individualized Education Plan (IEP) is drafted. The IEP includes academic, physical, social, and management needs, goals and objectives, and service recommendations based on your child’s needs. The plan is reviewed annually at a CPSE meeting where your child’s progress is discussed, and the need for continued services is determined.

CSE

The Committee on Special Education (CSE) services children from ages 5-21. Students may be referred by their parents; a designee of the school district in which the student resides, or the public school district the student legally attends or is eligible to attend; the commissioner or designee of a public agency with responsibility for the education of the student; and/or a designee of an education program affiliated with a child care institution with the committee on special education responsibility. Evaluations are conducted by district staff. Throughout the process, parent permission and approval are needed in order to continue to the next step. Consent is always obtained in writing. A parent has the right to stop the process at any point by submitting a request in writing.

IEP

New York State (NYS) regulations defines an Individualized Education Program (i.e., IEP) as a written statement for a student with a disability that is developed, reviewed and revised by a Committee on Special Education, Subcommittee on Special Education or Committee on Preschool Special Education. The Individualized Education Program (IEP) is the cornerstone of the special education process for each student with a disability.

The IEP is a legal document that ensures a student has access to the general education curriculum, to the extent practicable, and is provided the appropriate learning opportunities, accommodations, modifications, and special education services needed for the student to progress towards achieving the individual goals. Each student with a disability must have an IEP in effect by the beginning of each school year. Federal and State laws and regulations specify the information that must be documented in each student’s IEP.

504 Plan

A 504 accommodation plan is based on Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, a civil rights law that ensures all children have equal access to an education. The 504 accommodation plan is a legal document and is designed to provide modifications and/or accommodations to assist students with special needs who are in general education. These plans are developed through the Section 504 committee and monitored by the building team. Students can be considered for a 504 accommodation plan if they have a physical or mental impairment that substantially impacts one or more major life activities. Major life activities include, but are not limited to, caring for one’s self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, and learning.

Frequently Used Acronyms

Acronym	Definition
ABA	Applied Behavior Analysis
ADHD	Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder
AIS	Academic Intervention Service
APE	Adaptive Physical Education
AT	Assistive Technology
BIP	Behavior Intervention Plan
CPSE	Committee on Preschool Special Education
CSE	Committee on Special Education
ESY	Extended School Year
FAPE	Free Appropriate Public Education
FBA	Functional Behavioral Assessment
IDEA	Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
IEP	Individualized Education Plan
LRE	Least Restrictive Environment
NYSAA	New York State Alternate Assessment
OT	Occupational Therapy
PT	Physical Therapy
PWN	Prior Written Notice