Marian Educational Outreach To Use Grant To Train Teachers, Create 'Cultures Of Inclusion'
No two students learn in the same way, according to 17-year veteran special education teacher Jamie Broeker.
To reach all pupils, Broeker said educators must use a variety of learning techniques.
Broeker is a K-5 special education teacher at Annunciation School at Holy Spirit campus. She recalled last year learning about the IEP Focus on Inclusion Conference in Indianapolis and she immediately wanted to attend.
Now, Broeker gets that chance.
Through a $10,000 Koch Foundation grant, Marian Educational Outreach will send 12 teachers – six from Annunciation School Holy Spirit campus and six from Westside Catholic schools – and two administrators for training to focus on inclusion. The conference is in March.
“As a special education teacher I’m constantly looking for ways to enhance practices for optimal student learning and growth for all students, but especially those faced with learning challenges,” Broeker said. “I’m looking forward to learning from some of the best in the field, and I’m excited to bring back new strategies that can be implemented immediately with students.”
The two administrators who will join the teachers are Dr. Marie Williams, who recently retired as Memorial High School principal; and Beverly Williamson, former Marian Educational Outreach director who still does work for the nonprofit.
Williamson will facilitate the project, while Williams will return from the conference and conduct follow-up training for other teachers in the diocese.
Williamson, who has worked for MEO since 1996, said the nonprofit is “all about inclusion.” She said the conference and training is to equip as many educators as possible with the tools they need to help all students learn.
“Our mission since we transitioned in 2006 is to make schools more inclusive,” she said. “And to provide any services we could so general education teachers have training and support needed to serve a diverse classroom. This conference really fit that profile.”
A goal, Williamson said, is to create “Cultures of Inclusion.” She anticipates Annunciation Holy Spirit and Westside Catholic schools will become models for inclusion across diocesan schools because they are anchor schools. She said the project is about helping teachers benefit students who have unique learning needs to serve as many kids as possible.
“I do think it’s on the cusp of being a leading-edge trend in education because it just makes sense that these kids have the same opportunity and kinds of resources in general education classrooms,” Williamson said. “This is all about helping the general education teacher to feel comfortable, prepared and like they have the toolbox to serve those kids and collaborate with special education teachers.”
Westside Catholic fourth grade teacher Leigh Anne Cutrell believes it’s important to implement research-based lessons into classrooms to support individual needs and learning styles of all students. Cutrell is attending the conference, and is eager to learn new strategies to incorporate in her classroom.
“Every student deserves the opportunity to learn,” she said. “It is important that teachers learn and keep up-to-date on best practices that support the success of every child in a classroom.”
Broeker said Holy Spirit’s student population is diverse and it’s vital that all kids feel they are part of a community.
“All students have different abilities and needs and it is important that we meet students where they are and move them forward,” she said. “A main focus area of this conference is Universal Design for Learning, which is a way of thinking about teaching and learning that gives all students an equal opportunity to succeed, no matter how they learn.”
After training, both Broeker and Cutrell hope to share what they learn with their colleagues.
“I am proud to be part of the Catholic Diocese of Evansville and support the growth and development of our schools as we look for ways to open doors to students with learning challenges,” Cutrell said.
