Officers

President

Sarah Walker
Director of Student Services
Amherst Exempted Village School District
550 Milan Avenue
Amherst, OH  44001

440-988-1990

 

President Elect

Talia St.Clair
Director of Student Services
Indian Valley Local Schools
 
Treasurer
Gwenn M Spence
Director of Student Services
Granville Exempted Village Schools
130 N. Granger St
Granville, OH 43023
Office #740-587-8180
Fax # 888-683-7730


Secretary

Jacqueline Vance
Director of Pupil Personnel  
North Ridgeville City Schools 
34620 Bainbridge Road
North Ridgeville, OH 44039
Office # (440) 353-1137
 

Past President
Deidre S. Parsons
Director of Student Services
Barberton City Schools
479 Norton Ave.,
Barberton, OH  44203

(330) 753-1025 ext. 13127


Communications Officer
Dr. Valerie Riedthaler
The ESC of Northeast Ohio
10 North Main Street
Akron, OH  44308
330-761-2733

 

Executive Director

Donna Stelzer
937-902-0671
March 2021
S M T W T F S
28
01
02
03
04
05
06
07
08
09
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
01
02
03

Bulletin Subscribe

Subscribe to our eBulletin and stay up to date on the latest news and events.

Click here to sign up!
 
Image
OAPSA is proudly affiliated with NAPSA and CASE
Home Page Download Files
Links

Ohio Association of Pupil Services Administrators

...is a state organization of school administrators currently charged with
district-wide administrative responsibilities for Pupil Services.

OAPSA members oversee one or more of the following

in their districts:

  • Attendance and Student Accounting
  • Pupil Assessment
  • Guidance
  • At-Risk Programs
  • Nursing
  • Discipline
  • School Psychology
  • Gifted/Talented Programs
  • School Social Work
  • Related Service(s) (e.g. SLP, OT, PT)
  • Exceptional or Special Education
  • State and Federal Grants
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Upcoming Events
Home Page News
Dates for Upcoming OAPSA Conferences 
Posted by Valerie Riedthaler on Jul 01, 2019

OAPSA Conference Dates 

2/26/2021 Virtual

5/7/2021 Virtual

2/24 & 2/25/2022 at Nationwide Conference Center

2/23 & 2/24/2023 at Nationwide Conference Center

 

 

 
 
 
Read more...
Home Page Stories
Nominations for Dr. John Opperman Award
The form is online at:  https://clubrunner.blob.core.windows.net/00000100906/en-ca/files/homepage/dr-opperman-award-nomination-form/The-2021-Dr.-John-Opperman-Outstanding-Contribution-Award.pdf
 
Reminder: Deadline of March 2 is rapidly approaching to send in a nomination form.     
 
Do you know an OAPSA member who is a Special  Education or a Student  Services Administrator worthy of recognition for their outstanding contributions?     Too often, Pupil Services  and Special Education Administrators are accustomed to seldom receiving praise and recognition. In fact,  they usually operate in the shadows until something goes awry.  However, each one of us now has an opportunity to nominate one of our colleagues for some well deserved recognition. 
 
Following the retirement of  our first OAPSA Executive Director, Dr. John Opperman, our  OAPSA Executive Board established the Dr. John Opperman Outstanding Contribution  Award to annually recognize a member of OAPSA who has contributed greatly to the profession.  You may recall that Deb Dennis was our 2019 Recipient of that Award and Angela Macwhinney was our 2020 Recipient of that Award. 
 
Take a moment and think about your colleagues you know well that you turn to for professional advice and guidance.  Let's recognize our colleague(s) who are always ready to help and widely recognized as a leader in their field.  Consider nominating one of those OAPSA members  for this Award so the rest of the state can appreciate them as well. It's OK for a group of OAPSA members to form a team to work together to make a nomination, also.  I urge you to take advantage of this opportunity to nominate a worthy OAPSA member today! 
 
I have attached more details about  the history of this award as well as a Nomination Form for your review. I encourage you to consider nominating one of your highly successful colleagues for this award.  Nomination Forms must be emailed to me directly at    OAPSA.DonnaStelzer@gmail.com by  March 2, 2020.  Please email me with any questions. 
    
Thanks so much for giving this your  careful consideration.  
 
Read more...
OCALICONLINE 2020
OCALICON is rapidly approaching and OAPSA members are actively planning, participating and presenting.  OCALICON is a 3 day world-class learning and networking opportunity. There’s also a preconference called Inclusive Education Leadership Institute and sessions for Sp Ed Administrators are built into the conference as well.   Everything you have loved about OCALICON is now in a virtual format. 

The following sessions have OAPSA members as presenters.  If  you are also a presenter  and we inadvertently missed you, please let us know! 

1)      Successfully Navigating Special Education Team Meetings for Parents and District Staff  - Wed 10:30 – 11:30    Presenters: Paul Kidd and Sarah Walker from OAPSA and Lisa Hickman and Marbella Caceres from Ohio Coalition for the Education of Children with Disabilities

 

2)      The Ohio Related Services Workgroup: Solutions to the Challenges  - Thursday 2:45 – 3:45 PM     Bernadette Laughlin (ODE), Ann Brennan (OSPA), Carrie Spangler, (Educational Audiologist) Barbara Conrad (SLP), Donna Stelzer (OAPSA) 

 

3)      An Introduction for New Directors of Special Education and Pupil Services : Friday 10:30 -11:30 Valerie Riedthaler, Sarah Walker, and Gwenn Spence (OAPSA Executive Board Members)

If you are registered for OCALICON you can learn more details about any of those sessions and other sessions by using the Session Sorter at conference.ocali.org   If you are not yet registered for OCALICON and for the Inclusive Education Leadership Institute,  you may also register for both at that same website.  See more details about OCALICON and the Preconference below. 

What is OCALICON? A 3-day world-class learning  and networking opportunity focused on building and supporting meaningful opportunities for people with autism. https://conference.ocali.org

 

Preconference: Inclusive Education Leadership Institute (Free)

There’s still time for you to register for the Preconference: ODE’s Inclusive Education Leadership Institute (formerly called Special Education Leadership Institute)

 

9:00 am - 12:00 pm EST | Tuesday, November 10 (Limited to first 300 registrants)

Learn how to successfully utilize collaborative planning for inclusive instruction for all students!

Join three experts from the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) for a look at a whole-school, multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) framework for organizing and supporting learning for all students –including students with significant cognitive disabilities and those who have recently shifted from the alternate assessment to general assessment.

There is no cost to attend the Tuesday Preconference. However, attendance is limited to 300 registrants

Note: Due to the limited number of registrants please be considerate of your peers and colleagues and register only if you are able to participate in the Tuesday Preconference.

Read more...
Join us in Welcoming Our New OAPSA Secretary and Saying Thank You to Paul Kidd
 
Jacqueline Vance will begin her duties as OAPSA Executive Secretary May 1, 2020.   Please welcome Jackie to our OAPSA Executive Board! 
 
              
 
 
Each year in the spring,  when we bring a new member into the Executive Board, it's time for one of our Executive Board Members to move back into the role of an OAPSA member. Thank you to Paul Kidd, OAPSA's Past President, who will be moving off our OAPSA Executive Board as Jacqueline joins us.     Paul has served faithfully as he has moved through the typical rotation of our officers  from being  OAPSA's Secretary to President Elect to  President and to Past President over the past four years.    We are so very grateful that Paul shared his  time, his leadership, his many talents and expertise with OAPSA for four years and we look forward to continuing to have our paths cross with him in the future in his role as a member of our OAPSA membership committee.   I know you join me in thanking Paul for his dedication and hard work over the past four years. 
 
           
 
 
Read more...
Recognizing OAPSA President Deidre Parsons
Our OAPSA Executive Board met briefly this afternoon and as part of that meeting, we recognized the leadership of our OAPSA President, Deidre Parsons.  Deidre's term as President will conclude on May 1, 2020  but she will remain on our Executive Board for a full year in her new role as our Past President.  Sarah Walker will then move into her role as President of OAPSA and Talia St. Clair will move into her role as President Elect.   And, as you know, we are in process of voting on a new secretary who will take on that role.  Deidre's plaque will be shipped directly to her residence and should arrive shortly. 
Thank you, Deidre, for your leadership during what has turned into a very unusual school year!
 
Read more...
The Winner of OAPSA's Dr. John Opperman Outstanding Contribution Award 2020 is...
The Winner of OAPSA's Dr. John Opperman Outstanding Contribution Award 2020 is...
The Winner of OAPSA's Dr. John Opperman Outstanding Contribution Award 2020 is
Angela Macwhinney 
Director of Special Education 
Delaware City Schools
 
And it was a total surprise for her! 
 
Here's how we kept the secret.  Dr. Benjamin R Jenkins, Director of  Special Education at West Clermont Schools, nominated Angela and kept that nomination a secret from Angela. Working with Ben and OAPSA, her district arranged to surprise her at a previously scheduled virtual  administrative meeting with her district administrators which was held the afternoon of April 21.   There were 33 participants on Hangout to witness Angela receiving the announcement about the award.  Her husband along with Dr. Ben Jenkins,  Paul Kidd, Deidre Parsons, Dr. Valerie Reidthaler and I were all special guests that surprised Angela at the start of our announcement. We managed to keep it such a surprise that Angela was close to speechless at first.
 
 OAPSA thanks Jerry Stewart, Executive Director of Human and Material Resources and to  Heidi Kegley, Superintendent, at Delaware City Schools for helping OAPSA plan this wonderful surprise.  It brought  big smiles to the faces of all in attendance (See photo below) !    We plan to recognize Angela again the next time we can all be together at our next OAPSA "in person" conference. 
 
Here's Angela's official response: 
Photo from Awards Presentation - Just Look at Those Smiles! 
 
And here are Angela's initial thoughts- 
"This was an absolute shock and I am honored and frankly still in disbelief. I've watched the video and loved seeing the smiles of my colleagues, friends, and husband. The past few weeks have been incredibly stressful and seeing each of them smile was the best gift of all. Thank you again!"
 
For those of you who want all the details, here is the press release: 

The Ohio Association of Pupil Services Administrators (OAPSA) proudly announces that Angela Macwhinney is the recipient of The Dr. John Opperman Outstanding Achievement Award for 2020.   Mrs. Macwhinney is currently the Director of Special Education for Delaware City Schools and was formerly a Preschool Special Education and Early Childhood Supervisor for Lima City Schools.  

Angela was nominated by an OAPSA member, Dr. Benjamin R Jenkins, who worked closely with Mrs. Macwhinney for three years at Delaware City Schools. Two of those years they were fellow Special Education Supervisors and then the third year, Mrs. Macwhinney was his immediate supervisor.  Dr. Jenkins has continued to consult and collaborate with Mrs. Macwhinney over the past two years in his new role as Director of Special Education at West Clermont Local School District.    Dr. Jenkins describes Angela as thoughtful, kind, funny and most importantly, student centered.  He noted that Angie’s opinion is sought out very frequently and is always sound.   Dr. Jenkins explains that Angie has improved student services at Delaware City Schools and one of those improvements was that she created a centralized IEP training for all special education staff members.    A guiding principal of that training is doing the right thing for the district’s neediest students.  It was so well done that other districts, such as West Clermont Schools wanted to duplicate that training.

Angela has faithfully attended OAPSA conferences for years and always encourages her fellow pupil services administrators to join OAPSA which helps OAPSA to increase their membership.  Angela also always has thoughtful insights about the information that is presented at OAPSA’s conferences and shares her insights with her peers. In addition, in January 2020, when OAPSA needed to find 5 volunteers within a 24 hour time period to be a part of group that ODE was forming to discuss proposed changes to standards for the Implementation of Positive Behavior Intervention Supports and the use of Restraint and Seclusion, Angela was one of the first ones to unconditionally volunteer to represent OAPSA.

Jerry Stewart, Executive Director of Human and Material Resources at Delaware City Schools, indicates that Angie is a highly effective leader in both her district and community.  She cares deeply about all students and regularly goes the extra mile to make sure the students, their parents and staff have the materials, resources, supplies and professional development to be successful. She can be rarely found in the office as she thrives being in the schools, with the students and staff.  In addition, Angie serves the community as a member of the City of Delaware Parks and Recreation Advisory Board. 

OAPSA, which is Ohio’s Chapter for CASE (Council of Administrators of Special Education), established The Dr. John Opperman Outstanding Contribution Award in 2019 to annually recognize a member of OAPSA who had contributed greatly to the profession. OAPSA is proud to honor Angela Macwhinney for some well-deserved recognition for her outstanding contribution for her profession.  

 

I know you join with me in congratulating Angela! 

Read more...