The Assistant Director for Support Services provides program direction, leadership and supervision for the Support Services Team. The Assistant Director is a member of the Director’s Management Team, which is responsible for the program operations for the Clerc Center Demonstration Schools. The Demonstration Schools are comprised of The Kendall Demonstration Elementary School for the Deaf (KDES) and The Model Secondary School for the Deaf, serving deaf and hard of hearing students from parent infant stages through high school. The Assistant Director works collaboratively with lead teachers and individual support service providers in monitoring student related services as outlined in individualized educational plans and integration of services within the instructional team model. The Assistant Director facilitates and provides oversight for supplementary contractual services with community agencies and collaborative onsite services for special student needs.

   The Support Services Team is comprised of a diverse group of professionals with specialized skills in the following areas: psychology, social work, school counseling, audiology, speech/language, nursing, occupational and physical therapy. In addition to specialized training in their own discipline, SST members have expertise in applying these skills for program planning with deaf and hard of hearing children. The team is divided into three units:

   Consultants in the areas of otolaryngology and psychiatry are also available to work closely with student health, audiology and mental health personnel and families to address special student needs.

   The major focus and responsibility of the SST is to provide assessment and intervention services for students. Service provision addresses students’ Individual Educational Program (IEP) or Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) objectives. Support services are provided to assist students in their personal, social, communication, physical and academic development, thus enhancing and supplementing the instructional program at the Demonstration Schools. A strong emphasis is placed on transition needs from preschool through completion of the high school program. Intervention is primarily preventive and developmental in nature. Remediation and crisis intervention needs are addressed as well. An integrated model with strong emphasis on collaboration with instructional staff and families has been implemented throughout all units.

   Specialists work in unison with members of the instructional team to enhance and support the Clerc Center priorities of developing and implementing programs to promote family involvement, literacy development, and student transition. SST specialists focus on including literacy development into service delivery models by incorporating instructional team theme units, vocabulary and materials while addressing IEP/IFSP objectives. Student transition needs are intimately connected to all SST activities to assist with effective movement from one instructional team level to another, and from school to home to community. The specialists are involved with the daily routines of the children. Service provision relates directly to the already existing structure of the child’s day and the content and themes of the classroom. Support services are not found at the perimeter, but at the center of the program. Support services personnel collaborate closely with teachers and other school personnel to assess and document the needs of children and their families as well as develop and support implementation of realistic and functional plans to meet these needs.

   SST personnel work collaboratively with university training programs to provide experiences to undergraduate and graduate level students who have interest in working with deaf and hard of hearing students. These training experiences expand the future pool of qualified professionals with expertise specific to deaf and hard of hearing children.

   Through out the year, SST staff provides workshops and outreach assistance to professionals, parents, school personnel, community agencies, and preparatory programs from around the country and world. They address a broad range of issues related to programming needs, assessment and services for students and families with deaf or hard of hearing children.