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The PARAgraph, Utah's Newsletter for School Paraprofessionals (Back
to the Table of Contents)
Volume 1 Issue 1 (Fall 2002)
The Paraprofessional Consortium or How This All Came about
Peggy Dooling-Baker
Teacher Specialist, Ogden City School District
Many individuals in different States have been working diligently since the
mid 1980’s to create state standards for paraprofessionals, to assess needs
and to provide training for paraprofessionals and their supervising teachers.
In January of 1999, a group got together in Utah and formed the State Paraprofessional
Consortium. The Consortium’s mission is:
...to promote training and support for paraprofessionals,
leading to
improved outcomes for children, youth and families.
We began by engaging in a strategic planning process, to clarify our mission
and articulate objectives, with specific strategies to achieve those objectives.
The objectives address: professional development for para-professionals; activities
to meet the needs of supervisory personnel; communication systems to disseminate
information to para-professionals; promoting visibility and public awareness
of paraprofessionals; and, ways to recruit and retain skilled paraprofessionals.
The Consortium members prioritized the objectives and began to focus efforts
on enhancing communication systems to disseminate information to paraprofessionals.
The activities of consortium members and others have resulted in two exciting
communication systems for paraprofessionals. One is this publication, The PARAgraph,
the first in Utah designed specifically for paraprofessionals. The second communication
system is the creation of a web site (www.utahpara.org), which should be accessible
by the time you read this, and which will include the paraprofessional standards
and guidelines, training opportunities, guidance on appropriate roles and responsibilities,
information pertaining to the State Paraprofessional Conference and many more
hot topics for paras.
The Paraprofessional Consortium is like the Circle of Friends, a sculpture
of a group of individuals gathered arm in arm to celebrate life. Similarly,
the Paraprofessional Consortium gathers to support and celebrate the role of
the paraprofessional: a group of diverse individuals who came together with
the common goal of coordinating training efforts and support for paraprofessionals.
Our Circle of the Paraprofessional Consortium extends from Logan to South Sanpete
and beyond. Members represent paraprofessionals, teachers, special education
directors, State Office of Education (Students at Risk and Title I), Utah Schools
for the Deaf and Blind, Salt Lake Community College, Utah State University and
BYU, the Department of Health, and the Utah School Employees Association.
The Paraprofessional Circle of Friends will continue to expand across the state
as we promote efforts to communicate with paraprofessionals, coordinate training,
and celebrate the role of paraprofessionals in an effort to improve outcomes
for our children. We hope that you can be part of that expanding Circle, as
you network with other para-educators, take advantage of opportunities for training
and continue to represent your profession through the exemplary work that you
do.
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