Special Education & Support
At the Gerson School, administrators and staff are committed to providing each student with the special education support and services needed for the individual to make progress in both learning and life. In order to achieve this goal, Gerson:
- Monitors each Individualized Education Program (IEP) for compliance in all areas of federal and Ohio Department of Education regulation;
- Creates and implements high quality IEPs addressing students’ academic and behavioral needs;
- Supplies all identified services and supports, including vocational transition services, instructional and behavioral specially designed instruction, individualized accommodations across a wide range of instructional and social emotional needs, and testing requirements;
- Collects progress monitoring data to evaluate the effectiveness of strategies and services in both academic and behavioral skills identified on IEPs;
- Adjusts as necessary, based on data, each student’s program to maximize growth and learning;
- Collaborates closely with parents and districts in working to help each child achieve success in Ohio’s Learning Standards and social emotional skills and decision-making, i.e., in learning and in life.
Meeting Our Students’ Needs
Our therapeutic milieu provides students with emotional and behavioral support, which enables them to attend to academic, social and emotional life goals. Support is individualized for each student and also incorporated into group programming. This way, students receive personalized interventions in an already supportive environment.
- Art and other mediums are incorporated into all subjects to enhance learning and experiences through project-based skill building.
- Yoga and other therapeutic activities are provided throughout the school year to teach and reinforce emotional regulation, relaxation techniques, and other coping strategies.
- A school-based social worker and student services coordinator work with students individually on a regular or as-needed basis to support emotional and social needs.
- Student-identified coping strategies are incorporated into the school day, or accessed on an as-needed basis. These strategies, such as listening to music, talking with a support staff, walking or swinging, writing in a journal or playing with fidget toys, help students to regroup and “re-set” so that they can join classes and activities.
- Opportunities for leadership, such as the Gerson Leadership Council, are utilized to help build confidence, to create a sense of responsibility to self, others and the school, and to teach skills related to helping others.