Distinguished Director Award 2016
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Dr. Janette Hahn
Q1: Nominee's Name:
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Distinguished Director Award 2016
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Q2: PROGRAM FEATURESDescribe the unique and outstanding features of the nominee’s special education
program.
KISD special education population is approximately 3000 students. Excluding teachers and paras, the department is
staffed with 130 special education support staff to help meet the needs of the teachers, aides and the students.
The district is well known for the programs it offers special education students. The district has a strong reputation for
the programs it offers students with Autism and other disabilities limiting their ability to communicate and participate
socially with others. Dr. Hahn, restructured the behavior program, STRIDES, for students with extreme behaviors. The
implementation of a very structured 3 level system has proved to positively impact the behavior of the students in the
classroom. Many of the students have successfully gone through the tiers and are able to be mainstreamed with
minimal supports.
Hahn was instrumental in securing a grant from the ESC to address LRE issues with regards to 3-5 year olds. She
works collaboratively with the Director of Early Learning and staff from the ESC. The two directors have created a task
force, which includes several elementary principals and the principal of the Early Learning Center. The Task Force
meets regularly and puts plans in motion to make a difference for special needs children age 3-5.
Dr. Hahn has also implemented a Continuous Improvement Team consisting of diagnosticians and speech pathologist.
The 10 member team includes a representative from each feeder pattern as well as each school level, elementary,
intermediate, middle and high school. The team represents the special education staff and collaborates on questions
posted by individuals on the special education staff. The answers are then posted to ensure consistency among all 130
special education staff members. It has proven to be a very good way to consistently communicate with a large number
of staff.
Dr. Hahn started joint meetings with campus administration and special education staff in order for all to hear the same
information and be on the same page when holding ARD meeting for students and providing services. The meetings
have been extremely well received. Campus administrators and their support staff hear the same information and at the
same time. This allows for much better understanding of special education regulations and district expectations. This
school year, 15-16, Dr. Hahn is able to meet with Principals and Assistant Principals during their monthly meetings. She
presents on updates in special education.
Hahn works with those in leadership in order to bridge the gap between special education and general education. The
goal is to make sure everyone is informed with regards to special education laws, procedures and guidelines.
Hahn’s is extremely invested in making sure all special education students have access to the general education
curriculum. Since Hahn’s arrival in Keller 4 years ago special education resource teachers are trained in general
education curriculum, they attend curriculum trainings and are part of campus discussions regarding the instruction on
students in the core areas. Hahn also brought in co-teach and has contracted with Dr. Marilyn Friend to work with
campus administration, general and special education teachers as the district phases in co-teach. KISD just completed
phase 2 and will begin phase 3 for the 16-17 school year. She attended the national co-teach conference in December
of 2016 so she can further the work started with Dr. Friend and build co-teach capacity in the district.
Hahn is dedicated to improving services and instruction for all special education students. She trained each individual
campus (39) on an inclusion rubric used to determine the amount of support a student needs based on their individual
needs. This allows ARD committees to focus on the needs of the student and make more accurate decisions regarding
services.
Hahn’s is always looking for better ways to serve students, utilize staff and make the best decisions for the district and
the students its serves.
She applied for, and received a grant to bring in Vizzle to support the self-contained classrooms and has added the
technology needed to get the best benefit for the students. The teachers are using it and it is proving extremely
beneficial for meeting the needs of the students.
Dr. Hahn brought in a consultant for the 15-16 school year to build leadership capacity within the entire department.
The department, all 130, have participated all year in professional development in order to create and implement
Touchstones and Guiding Principles and develop processes and manuals to all in the special education department will
speak the same language for consistency and better communication.
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Q3: PROGRAM IMPACTDescribe impact of the nominee’s leadership on students, district/SSA and community.
Janette is someone who gets things done. She knows the laws, knows special education well and is always focused on
what is best for students. She thinks outside the box and has a great way of challenging others to do the same. Janette
is part of the learning function for Keller ISD. The learning function focuses on instruction for all students. Janette
participates in general education and special education instruction. For the past two years she has been a part of
Instructional Rounds. As part of working on a team, observing instruction, she makes sure the special education
programs are included in the rounds. She also observes how the special needs students are integrated and participate
in the general education classrooms.
When Janette first came to Keller, the resource students were not consistently part of the general education curriculum.
Janette’s goal then, and continues to be, access to the general education curriculum, to the maximum extent
appropriate for all special needs children. She is dedicated to making sure special education teachers are part of
general education PD for instruction and the TEKS. The goal is better instruction for all special education students.
Janette works very closely with the Leadership function, which includes campus administrators. She meets with the
Leadership function team in order to make sure they have a complete understanding of the direction of the special
education department and the needs surrounding instruction.
Janette keeps the school board and community involved by making presentations at the school board meetings
regarding special education needs and how the rapid growth of special needs children I the district is impacting the
district.
Janette will always talk to any parent who calls and has concerns. She is always open to meeting with them in person
to listen to their concerns and come up with a solution.
Janette’s first and foremost goal is providing the quality special education instruction to all special education students.
Special education teachers receive relevant training each year regarding PLAAFP writing, goals and objectives,
specially designed instruction and progress reporting.
As part of building leadership capacity in the department, Janette brought in a consultant for the 15-16 school year to
work with the entire special education department, all 130. The goal being to build leadership capacity in all staff and
unite as a strong special education department. The Leadership team, which consist of the Director, Assistant Director
and 3 Coordinators worked on a strategic plan to improve communication and consistency in processes to build a
stronger department. The entire team met 6 times over the course of the 15-16 school year to develop guiding
principles and touchstones every individual in the department would embrace and follow. The team also worked to
develop process and manuals during the meetings with the consultant. The goal was to get buy in from every
stakeholder in the department to and to increase consistency in processes and communication.
Janette participates in the Keller ISD Community Ambassadors meetings. These meetings are held throughout the year
in the evenings. The meetings are attended by people in the community wanting to know more about KISD. Janette
presents information about KISD special education at these meetings.
The district participates in a Reading Summit Collaboration Meeting with Birdville ISD and Janette participates in those
meetings to make sure special education is always a part of the conversation with regards to reading instruction for
special education students.
Janette is a member of the Committee of 100 for TCASE, and the House of Delegates. She has also been on TCASE
convention committees. She keeps up with all legislative issues and continually contacts the delegates in her region
regarding special education issues.
Q4: PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT/COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENTList dates and types of professional
activities/organizations (presentations, offices held, publications, etc.); civic/community involvement;
professional growth activities undertaken for improvement of program/professional skills.
1. Teaches Adjunct Classes for TCU College of Education
2. Advisory Committee for Esped
3. House of Delegates Representative for Region XI for TCASE
4. TCASE Leadership, Power of 100 Initiative
5. Dallas Baptist Educator Preparation Board
6. Board of Directors, TCU Frog Club
7. Team Captain, TCU Frog Club Membership Recruitment
8. President of the Education Alumni Network, TCU College of Education
9. Elder, Faith Presbyterian Church
10. Praise Band Member, Faith Presbyterian Church
11. Past Member of the Board of Visitors for TCU
12. Past Treasurer of TEDA
National Memberships:
1. TCASE
2. Council for Exceptional Children
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Distinguished Director Award 2016
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2. Council for Exceptional Children
3. National Association of Professional Women
4. Who’s Who in Executives and Professionals
5. Registered Professional Educational Diagnostician Association
Professional Education – Career Advancement:
1. TCASE conferences, twice a year
2. Texas Law Conference for Administrators and Special Educators, twice a year
3. Region XI Special Education Director’s Meetings, monthly
4. ECI – LEA Cluster Meetings, yearly
5. National Co-Teach Conference
6. Webinars pertaining to special education issues such as Transition, Bilingual Evaluations for special education,
Dealing with Extreme Behaviors, and Autism
Presentations:
1. Xian University, China, Presented of Special Education and Disabilities to undergraduates in education
2. Presented on Special Education at TASB
3. Presented at TCASE
4. Other presentations and trainings include the following topics to general education and special education teachers:
a. Learning Disabilities Simulation Training
b. Co-Teach trainer for KISD
c. Differentiated Instruction
d. Multiple Intelligences and how it relates to instruction
e. Rti
f. Early Intervention services for children
g. Sensory integration and behavior strategies for Autism and behavior students
h. Cross Battery Assessment Training for Diagnosticians and speech pathologist
i. Inclusion support
j. Standards based IEP and PLAAFP writing
k. SDI training for the district
Janette has provided professional development for the district every year she has been in Keller ISD. She has provided
PD for special education teachers and staff as well as general education PD on special ed. The following are specific
dates for the past 2 years.
Professional Development 2014-2015 KISD Special Education Staff
August 12, 13, 14 and 15
Presented to new teachers to KISD regarding Special Education in KISD.
During the back to school PD we covered any new legal updates I have received from either the legal digest or the
director’s conference. All processes and systems are reviewed as well. This year the main focus was on the changes in
Esped and working through those.
Oct 13
Cross Battery Training
Nov 10
Training on legal updates, ARD paperwork and FIEs
January 5
Training on legal updates, ARD paperwork and FIEs, auditing paperwork
Joint Campus administrator and special ed staff meetings approximately every 6 weeks.
The purpose is to present the same information to campus administration and special education staff so everyone is on
the same page. I present on all new legal updates and changes. I also present recent court cases. Part of the
presentation has been on each eligibility area. I bring in programs specialist to present, LSSPs, etc. The main part is to
provide support to diagnosticians in front of campus administration. I want the administration to know the diags role and
the support they need from the campus in order to run a compliant ARD. I want the campus administrators to
understand what the diagnosticians are responsible for and what they are not. The dates of these meetings this year
were:
Sept 19, Nov 7, Jan 23, March 6 and April 10. (2 meetings had to be cancelled due to district conflicts)
I personally provide direct training to new special education staff, especially diagnosticians and speech pathologist. I
provide the training to those who are new to the profession and/or new to KISD. It is open to anyone, but especially
those with 1-5 years’ experience. The dates were Aug 29, sept 12 and Oct 17. I offer anyone who needs additional help
to contact me or their mentor and we are glad to help.
Present on specific special education issues at Principal and Assistant Principal Meetings, Put together a MOC ARD for
one of the meetings to talk about the importance of following the ARD agenda, being on time and what best practice is.
Professional Development for 15-16.
Presented at Keller University in July 2016 – Empowering the special education teacher
August 2016
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Distinguished Director Award 2016
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August 2016
New sped teacher training
Diagnostician Welcome Back training
Special Ed Support Staff Training
Principal and AP meetings – Special ed updates
New to Keller special ed staff training, held 4 times at the beginning of the year
Esped training for diagnosticians
Leadership Academy for special ed staff (all 130)
Sept 2016 – Brought in Cathy Sartain to train every special education teacher in the district on PLAAFP and goal
writing. Each teacher attended a 2 day training and then a follow up in the spring.
October 2016
Continuation of Leadership Academy with special education staff
November 2016
Provided training/simulation on what it is like to have a learning disability to general education teachers
General Administrator Meetings (GAM) participated and presented on special education as part of the Learning
Function, Sept 16, Nov 18, March 23 and May 25
Principal and Assistant Principal Meetings: Aug 12, Oct 14 & 21, Dec 9 & 16, Feb 3 & 24, April 20 & 27.
Publications:
Dissertation:
Types of Certifications and Field Experiences Offered by 31 Universities in Texas for the Preparation of Special
Education Teachers
Created a document titled “Differentiated Instruction/Multiple Intelligences and how it relates to instruction” Used to train
teachers
Q5: ADMINISTRATIVE/LEADERSHIP EFFECTIVENESSDescribe how the nominee’s skills and talents facilitate
positive attitudes for change, promote positive staff relationships, promote integration of students with
disabilities, and how the nominee’s leadership/advocacy efforts have resulted in improved services for
students with disabilities.
Dr. Hahn is very open minded and always seeking ways to improve district and department processes to improve
instruction for special needs students. She is proactive in her thinking and is fine with KISD being the catalyst for
change. She is able to show how the change will improve processes and instruction for special needs students.
Janette’s door is always open and she encourages ideas and solutions. She facilitates collaboration among the special
education staff and the general education staff. She has been instrumental in getting the special education coordinators
involved in curriculum talks and trainings to benefit the special education students.
Janette always gets input from campus administration for changes in processes. Buy in across the district is vital to
serving the needs of all special education students.
Janette starts each meeting with celebrations from the staff. She wants to know about each one of them and what is
going on in their personal lives.
Janette is solution based and will listen to the solutions brought to her by others and collaborates to solve an issue. The
ultimate goal always being what is best for the students as well as the district.
The first two districts Janette worked for as a director were out of compliance with PBMAS and State Performance
Plans. Under her leadership, the districts were in compliance by the end of her first year. She instilled processes and
guidelines to keep the district in compliance year to year. Although KISD was in compliance when she arrived, she was
able to tweak some processes to reduce duplication in paperwork and make processes and guidelines smoother for the
staff.
Janette works with all administrators and leaders in KISD. She wants to make sure everyone understands special
education and the services offered to the students.
In her 10 years as director of special education she has also been the director for 504, Dyslexia, and 504. Although she
does not direct these programs in KISD, she works closely with the directors of these programs regarding servicing
special needs children.
Q6: AWARDS AND HONORSProvide any awards or honors that the nominee has received that are pertinent to
this award.
Excellence in Education Award – Texas Christian University, College of Education 2011
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Distinguished Director Award 2016
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Q7: ENDORSEMENTS:Please compile three to five
single-page letters of endorsement for the award, and
send them all together in a single e-mail to
[email protected] with the subject line: award nomination.
Please include the nominee’s last name or district name
in the body of the e-mail.
I will send the required letters of endorsement by the
award nomination deadline (May 18).
Q8: REGION
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Q9: Form completed by:
Name (first, last)
Hahn, Janette
District
Keller
E-mail address
[email protected]
Telephone number
817-744-6900
6/6
Shellie Johnson
EXECUTIVE Director of Communications
3 5 0 K e l l e r p a r k w a y
K e l l e r, T x. 7 6 2 4 8
P h o n e: 8 1 7 –7 4 4 –10 24
[email protected]
April 15, 2016
Members of the Special Education Director of the Year committee:
It is an honor to recommend Dr. Janette Hahn as the Special Education Director of the Year. I have had the
privilege of working with Dr. Hahn for the past few years while she has served as the Director of Special
Education for Keller ISD. In addition to managing the department that oversees the daily needs of our Special
Education population in a district of more than 34,000 total students, she is a passionate advocate for these
students, and is a forward-thinker who is always working to provide ‘out of the box’ solutions that benefit our
students and the district as a whole.
Dr. Hahn is an outstanding employee and has added tremendous value to Keller ISD. Not only is she
recognized in the district as a highly-effective and extremely knowledgeable Special Education Director, but
she is a respected leader in her field both, locally and statewide. She is the consummate professional always
pursuing excellence through best practices and innovative solutions.
Dr. Hahn is one who continuously searches for new methods of content delivery in an effort to provide the
utmost learning experience and care for our special needs population. She values collaboration among her
peers and those who report to her on a daily basis. Dr. Hahn recognizes the need for collaborative work in
order to provide nothing, but the best for our students and Keller ISD.
Dr. Hahn is a proponent of collecting and analyzing data to realize actionable results in the field of Special
Education. She is driven and intentional in her work and is fully committed to the success of every effort. She is
always striving to reach the highest standards of performance in everything she does. Dr. Hahn’s industry
knowledge, problem-solving and collaborative skills as well as, her high moral character make her the ideal
choice for Special Education Director of the Year.
Sincerely,
Shellie Johnson
KISD Communications Executive Director
April 14, 2016
Dear TCASE:
It is with great pleasure that I write a letter of support for Dr. Janette Hahn as a nominee for the
Distinguished Director Award for TCASE. I have had the privilege to work with Dr. Hahn in a
previous district and have witnessed her passion as an educator. She exhibits professionalism
and expertise in her field. In all of her dealings, Dr. Hahn’s decisions are solely based upon what
is the best decision for the child.
In my 23 years in education as a teacher, principal, and curriculum director, I have had the
opportunity to work alongside many quality educators. Janette Hahn is truly one of the top
educators that I would say fit the category of earning the “Distinguished” rating. She goes above
and beyond to serve the needs of the students she represents on a daily basis.
It is without reservation that I wholeheartedly support the nomination of Dr. Janette Hahn as the
recipient of the Distinguished Director Award for TCASE.
Sincerely,
Stacy Summerhill
Director of Curriculum and Learning
Eagle Mountain Saginaw ISD
1200 Old Decatur Road
Fort Worth, Texas 76179
817-232-0880
ReneeWhaley
SueRoche
EducationDiagnostician
KellerIndependentSchoolDistrict
350KellerParkway
Keller,TX76248
[email protected] [email protected]
April14,2016
DearTCASE,
IamwritingthisletterofendorsementinreferencetoanomineefortheDistinguishedDirector’s
Award,Dr.JanetteHahn.Dr.HahnhasworkedastheDirectorofSpecialEducationinKellerISDforthe
pastthreeyears.Iamconfidentinsayingthatdiagnosticiansandotherstaffmembershavebenefited
fromworkingwithDr.Hahn.
Dr.Hahn’sinitiationintoourdistrictwascomplicatedbyhavingtoquicklychooseandtrainstaffona
newspecialeducationdatamanagementprogram.Instressfultimes,itwasimmediatelyapparentthat
herknowledgewasvaluabletoheremployees.Herexperienceasadiagnosticianallowedhertotrainus
personallyandefficiently.Sincethattime,shehasremainedcommittedtoprovidinguswiththetools
andinformationthatisnecessarytobesuccessful.
Dr.Hahnexhibitsanextensiveknowledgeofspecialeducationandsheisconsistentlyapproachableand
availabletoanswerquestions.Sheisdecisiveandsheusesherknowledgetoguideherstaff.Shealso
bringsasenseofsimplicitytothejob.Inasystemthatisoftengrey,sheisabletousehervast
knowledgetoprovidesensibleguidancethatisinthebestinterestofherstaffandthestudents.Sheis
supportiveandunderstandingofthenatureourjobs.
Beingaspecialeducationdirectorisadifficultjob.Dr.Hahnembracesthischallengewithenthusiasm,
energy,sensibility,andmostimportantly,compassionforourstudents.
Sincerely,
ReneeWhaley,M.Ed&SueRoche,M.A.
Shellie Johnson
EXECUTIVE Director of Communications
3 5 0 K e l l e r p a r k w a y
K e l l e r, T x. 7 6 2 4 8
P h o n e: 8 1 7 –7 4 4 –10 24
[email protected]
April 15, 2016
Members of the Special Education Director of the Year committee:
It is an honor to recommend Dr. Janette Hahn as the Special Education Director of the Year. I have had the
privilege of working with Dr. Hahn for the past few years while she has served as the Director of Special
Education for Keller ISD. In addition to managing the department that oversees the daily needs of our Special
Education population in a district of more than 34,000 total students, she is a passionate advocate for these
students, and is a forward-thinker who is always working to provide ‘out of the box’ solutions that benefit our
students and the district as a whole.
Dr. Hahn is an outstanding employee and has added tremendous value to Keller ISD. Not only is she
recognized in the district as a highly-effective and extremely knowledgeable Special Education Director, but
she is a respected leader in her field both, locally and statewide. She is the consummate professional always
pursuing excellence through best practices and innovative solutions.
Dr. Hahn is one who continuously searches for new methods of content delivery in an effort to provide the
utmost learning experience and care for our special needs population. She values collaboration among her
peers and those who report to her on a daily basis. Dr. Hahn recognizes the need for collaborative work in
order to provide nothing, but the best for our students and Keller ISD.
Dr. Hahn is a proponent of collecting and analyzing data to realize actionable results in the field of Special
Education. She is driven and intentional in her work and is fully committed to the success of every effort. She is
always striving to reach the highest standards of performance in everything she does. Dr. Hahn’s industry
knowledge, problem-solving and collaborative skills as well as, her high moral character make her the ideal
choice for Special Education Director of the Year.
Sincerely,
Shellie Johnson
KISD Communications Executive Director
April 14, 2016
Dear TCASE:
It is with great pleasure that I write a letter of support for Dr. Janette Hahn as a nominee for the
Distinguished Director Award for TCASE. I have had the privilege to work with Dr. Hahn in a
previous district and have witnessed her passion as an educator. She exhibits professionalism
and expertise in her field. In all of her dealings, Dr. Hahn’s decisions are solely based upon what
is the best decision for the child.
In my 23 years in education as a teacher, principal, and curriculum director, I have had the
opportunity to work alongside many quality educators. Janette Hahn is truly one of the top
educators that I would say fit the category of earning the “Distinguished” rating. She goes above
and beyond to serve the needs of the students she represents on a daily basis.
It is without reservation that I wholeheartedly support the nomination of Dr. Janette Hahn as the
recipient of the Distinguished Director Award for TCASE.
Sincerely,
Stacy Summerhill
Director of Curriculum and Learning
Eagle Mountain Saginaw ISD
1200 Old Decatur Road
Fort Worth, Texas 76179
817-232-0880
ReneeWhaley
SueRoche
EducationDiagnostician
KellerIndependentSchoolDistrict
350KellerParkway
Keller,TX76248
[email protected] [email protected]
April14,2016
DearTCASE,
IamwritingthisletterofendorsementinreferencetoanomineefortheDistinguishedDirector’s
Award,Dr.JanetteHahn.Dr.HahnhasworkedastheDirectorofSpecialEducationinKellerISDforthe
pastthreeyears.Iamconfidentinsayingthatdiagnosticiansandotherstaffmembershavebenefited
fromworkingwithDr.Hahn.
Dr.Hahn’sinitiationintoourdistrictwascomplicatedbyhavingtoquicklychooseandtrainstaffona
newspecialeducationdatamanagementprogram.Instressfultimes,itwasimmediatelyapparentthat
herknowledgewasvaluabletoheremployees.Herexperienceasadiagnosticianallowedhertotrainus
personallyandefficiently.Sincethattime,shehasremainedcommittedtoprovidinguswiththetools
andinformationthatisnecessarytobesuccessful.
Dr.Hahnexhibitsanextensiveknowledgeofspecialeducationandsheisconsistentlyapproachableand
availabletoanswerquestions.Sheisdecisiveandsheusesherknowledgetoguideherstaff.Shealso
bringsasenseofsimplicitytothejob.Inasystemthatisoftengrey,sheisabletousehervast
knowledgetoprovidesensibleguidancethatisinthebestinterestofherstaffandthestudents.Sheis
supportiveandunderstandingofthenatureourjobs.
Beingaspecialeducationdirectorisadifficultjob.Dr.Hahnembracesthischallengewithenthusiasm,
energy,sensibility,andmostimportantly,compassionforourstudents.
Sincerely,
ReneeWhaley,M.Ed&SueRoche,M.A.