One of the main goals of Lutheran Association for Special Education is to mentor quality faculty members who use best practices to teach children with special education needs in our schools. LASE allots each faculty member a budget along with a listing of professional development opportunities in our community during every school year. This spring, LASE teachers joined thousands of Special Educators from all over the country at the national Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) convention that was held at the St. Louis Convention Center.
Nationally known speakers and researchers presented wide ranging topics from A-Z—A (Autism) to Z (special educations practices in New Zealand. One LASE teacher stated, “It was exciting to hear about the most recent research based strategies that we can use to touch the lives of our students.” One of the most touching moments occurred in the session entitled, “Hey Mom I’ve Got ADHD and a Couple of F’s”.
When students from the ‘Learning and Educating About Disabilities (LEAD) program shared their personal experiences in order to give educators a better understanding of the personal challenges these students face every day. Through attendance at the CEC convention LASE teachers were once again reminded of the vital importance of LASE’s ministry of serving God’s children with special needs in our Lutheran schools and our teachers are more equipped than ever to meet those needs using current best practices in the field of special education.