Vol. 5, Issue 1 | Winter 2007 

Every child. One Voice: Brandywine Special-Needs PTA

As any parent, teacher, administrator or advocate knows, finding the best educational and social fit for special needs students takes much time, patience, and understanding.  Parents are often left to figure out this complex school system on their own. In Delaware, the Brandywine School District’s Special Needs PTA is one of many emerging special needs PTA organizations across the country developed to help parents navigate through this multifaceted system. 

Developed by Alex Rittberg and Deb Heffernan, the Brandywine PTA was organized in 2004 during the early years of Inclusion, Least Restrictive Environment (LRE), and Mainstreaming. At that time, students of special needs were restricted to attending cluster schools with self-contained classrooms. Today, policies under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act mandate inclusion of special education students with regular education students. Rittberg notes that schools will be successful with inclusion when they make efforts to better understand their student population and become involved early in the process.  Schools must recognize that “finding programs of the best fit” to meet the needs of all students is critical since there is not a one-size-fits-all approach to inclusion.¹  Therefore, different schools must look at their special needs populations and make determinations that are most suitable to their needs. Brandywine’s mission seeks to work with the school district in providing the best educational experience for all children with special needs and to do so by providing local community support and informational resources.

Although the traditional PTA still exists in Brandywine, the Special Needs PTA serves an important role. People attend the Brandywine PTA meetings because they understand the importance of what the group seeks to address. The PTA also is of critical importance in assuring parents of non-special education students that inclusion is not going to be a detriment to their children. 

Brandywine’s interactive website, featuring a virtual forum, a resource page with recommended books, summaries of all meetings, and meeting minutes with expert speakers, provides parents with much support in deciphering the special needs world.² On average, meetings include 40–50 parents and 10–20 teachers or administrators. The organization thrives on a membership basis, of which parents comprise 60–70% of the memberships; teacher membership is rising and the nominal fee is often waived to encourage more teachers and superintendents to joining the group.

Recently, the Brandywine PTA enlisted the support of Stetson and Associates, an educational consulting firm, to conduct a $50,000 study evaluating how special education is addressed in this school district. Results from the study will also be implemented into the district’s five-year strategic plan. For a more in-depth look at the study, please see the article Solving the Puzzle:  A Step by Step for Inclusive Schools in the Research Matters section of Synergy. 
In the future, Rittberg would like to see the PTA expand through more committees that can implement change at all levels. His envisions committees that focus on support, education, and advocacy. The committee on support would focus on a goal of helping parents and districts through the individualized education plan (IEP) process. It would comprise parent teams and a cadre of IEP coaches and facilitators. The education committee could be expanded from its current mission to include more in-depth programs and resources for parents. The advocacy committee would include furthering the special education mission at the federal, state, and school district levels. Rittberg believes there is a need for more consistency across all levels.  Considerations like preparing a good agenda, ground rules, and performance level worksheets need to be implemented and understood by both parents and schools. 

The Brandywine Special Needs PTA is a model organization that looks forward to continuing its mission of supporting parents and schools to create a learning environment that meets the needs of all children.