About the Webinar: We are approaching the fifty-year anniversary of the implementation of the IDEA. Heralded as key civil rights legislation that called for families and educators to work together to meet the needs of children, IDEA represented hope for many. Forty-nine years later, hopefulness has somewhat faded. In this webinar, presenters will identify the shift in the Narrative of Special Education, then describe characteristics of the current story, and illustrate the cost of what has become for many, a polarizing conflict story. We will revisit the work of the Poway Unified School District introduced in a 2022 CADRE webinar. At that time, the presenters shared the work they have been doing to change their districts story and their commitment to building healthy relationships with families by taking a systems approach. In this webinar we will invite them to reflect on a third factor we believe to be critical to their success: the changes they initiated called for vision and strong leadership. They will identify and describe the challenges they faced and the leadership competencies essential to their success.
Part 1: Greg Abell and Carlo Rossi
- Share the evidence they have observed of the changing narrative of special education.
- Reflect on the cost of this current narrative.
- Call for the deconstruction of this conflict story.
Part 2: Greg Mizel and Jodi Payne (District and Department)
- Challenges encountered when implementing the changes.
- Key leadership competencies need to engage and navigate the challenges to achieve your success.
The 2022 webinar is available here: The Transformative Power of Engaging Parents as Partners | CADRE.
About the Speakers:
Greg Abell: Greg is the Principal at Sound Options Group, LLC, a Conflict Engagement firm. In this role he coordinates the design, implementation and delivery of all services. His particular area of expertise is in assisting agencies, organizations and communities in designing and implementing systems for more effectively engaging conflict, and facilitating productive and collaborative work environments. As a professional mediator, he has 25+ years experience mediating highly contentious, multi-party community and institutional disputes. He has the ability to weave this experience into his consulting and teaching as he assists individuals and organizations in collaboratively navigating conflict and change.
Carlo Rossi: Carlo Rossi has been involved in Special Education advocacy for over thirty-five years. He has spent the last fifteen years as the Independent Child Advocate for Social Advocates for Youth and the Sonoma County (CA) Special Education Local Plan Area. As a seventeen year adjunct faculty member in the Department of Special Education at San Francisco State University, he has previously worked for the California Department of Education, United Cerebral Palsy Association, and Community Alliance for Special Education. He has been a frequent presenter for the State of California Statewide Dispute Resolution Conference, CADRE and Legal Resources Publications annual conferences. He is passionate about parents and districts working collaboratively and cooperatively together while meeting the needs of student’s with unique learning challenges.
Greg Mizel: Mr. Mizel has over 30 years experience in public education, 20 of those in the Poway Unified School District. Prior to his current position as the Associate Superintendent of Student Support Services, Mr. Mizel served as Assistant Superintendent, Founding Principal of Del Norte High School, and Principal of Mesa Verde Middle School.
Jodi Payne: With over 30 years in Special Education, Jodi now serves as the Director of Family Engagement, Support and Resolution. Jodi supports all the District’s Alternative Dispute Resolution, Mediation and Due Process cases. She has made a concerted effort the last couple of years to support our families’ resolving conflicts more effectively, at the lowest level whenever possible. The partnership with our Parent Engagement Liaison and our families has enabled the creation of the Parent Ambassador Program. The unique program was founded on the need to have parents as partners. She also supports the District Resource Nurses and School Psychologists. Jodi started her career with PUSD as a Poway Academy of Learning (PAL) teacher before becoming a Program Specialist for 15 years and ultimately, a Special Education Director in 2016. When she’s not working, she enjoys spending time with her family including her three children and her husband. Sports and athletics are an important part of her family, especially supporting The Ohio State University.