Director of Special Education

The process of updating SMEC's Strategic Plan allowed SMEC's Department Lead Group to adopt new, structured, grounding meeting norms.  What has become SMEC's Community Agreements describe the following:

How We Show Up - This is a call to leave baggage you may be carrying at the door, invest, and contribute.

How We Communicate - This agreement calls for staff to purposefully pause and reflect, placing value on understanding and listening.

How We Relate - This agreement calls for those in the meeting to share bravely, assume colleagues positive motives, and always keep the collective goal in mind.

 SMEC's Special Education Director fulfills this role for each individual consortium member district. The outcome of this consortium structure means instead of building and maintaining relationships with administrators from one district, SMEC's Special Education Director is tasked with collaborating with seven sets of administrators (Superintendents and Principals), seven different school boards, seven different communities in three different counties.  

In an effort to facilitate effective communication, collaboration, and common goal, SMEC's own school board is comprised of one school board member from each member district's board.  These members have already been elected and confirmed by their own communities, making them eligible to serve on the SMEC board without specific election.  

This system, if lacking in transparency, communication, and equal investment, has the potential to create Threats or result in Weaknesses.  Managed with diligence, honestly, and cooperation, could be seen as a Strength, creating additional Opportunities for districts collectively when they work together.

SMEC is an education district whose purpose at inception was to keep students with greater needs in schools near their resident district, thus increasing the likelihood of transition back to that district and mitigating the exorbitant costs associated with sending students to programs outside their local communities for services.