PAGE 8
Hawaii Pacific Deaf Blind Project
Ka Leo Kako`o
(continued from page 2)
deaf-blind need unique supports and services. There are Federal monies set aside for projects like ours in every state. In
Hawai`i, we have 65 children identified and across the Pacific Islands 54 children identified; however we know there are
more children not reflected in our census. We need your help to share our information and support.
VOLUME 8 ISSUE 1
Since our Project spans the Pacific we have trained liaisons in the following jurisdictions. They are American Samoa:
Olive Issako; Republic of the Marshall Islands: Anida Timothy; Pohnpei: Roddy Robert; Chuuk: Chelsea Philip; Guam:
Diane Artero; Palau: Joycelyn Maldangesang, and CNMI: Lizelle Ameriez .
Additionally, we are collaborating with Gallaudet University’s Deaf Worldteach volunteers in the Marshall Islands. This
four year old program, sponsored by Gallaudet, places deaf volunteer teachers at the Majuro Deaf Education Center and
Ebeye Deaf Education Center. If you would like more information about Deaf WorldTeach, visit the website
(www.deafworldteach.org), like their FaceBook page (Deaf WorldTeach), or contact Dr. Judy Coryell at
[email protected].
HPDB looks forward to expanding our collaborative efforts with LDA in Hawai`i and in the Pacific. Together we are better.
Wishing you all a happy and healthy 2017 filled with Aloha.
Happy Holidays-Pacific Island Style
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Life Changing Tragedy
1
Hawaii Pacific Deaf -Blind
Project
2
Age of Advancement in
Technology
Team LDAH
3
Outstanding Moments of
2016
4
Outstanding Moments of
2016
5
Think About It!
Marshall Islands
Chamorro
Kosrae Meri Krismas
Mere Kirijmoj
Donna Do-Rite
6
`Ohana Corner
7
Happy Holidays
8
Felis Noche Buenan Pasgua yan Anu Nuebo
Felfalaen Ko bi’ech e duw nge baynag YAP
(Merry Christmas & Happy New Year)
Ammeseighil Ubuttiuweel Layul Lugh Carolinian
Pohnpei
Aht peren en Christmas
LDAH Board of Directors
Sam K. Yee
President
Manuia o le Kirisimasi!! American Samoa
To schedule a workshop training or for technical
support from one of our Parent Consultants
visit our website at: www.ldahawaii.org.
Or, call us at 536-9684
Call from Neighbor Islands toll free at:
1-800-533-9684
Tayne Sekimura
Vice President
Ungil Kurismas
`ma Bekerredechel el Becheserrak! Palau
Guam Hafa Adai and Merry Christmas
Hawaii Mele Kalikimaka Hau`oli Makahiki Hou
Directors
Neal Aoki, Esq.
Steven Nagata, Esq.
Leslie Novosel, PhD
Frederick W. Tucher
Natalie Nimmer
Interim Executive Director
The Voice of Support
January 2017
Life Changing Tragedy
O
n a beautiful
March day in 1988
while driving down a Tampa, Florida
highway, our family was involved in a
head on collision involving three cars.
This day had changed our lives forever.
My husband and three year old daughter
Ashley sustained severe injuries; my
injuries were considered moderate. Our
car was totaled and the driver at fault had
no car insurance or driver’s license. We
were devastated. Ashley had sustained
a severe head injury and we could tell
she was not the same. The medical
team at MacDill AFB
nicknamed Ashley “The
Miracle Child” because
they could not explain how
she survived.
by Marsha Robinson
reported Ashley was staring off into
space most of the day and falling asleep
at her desk. Within a year, Ashley was
mis-diagnosed with ADHD, and
prescribed Ritalin. But, things only got
worse.
We met Dr. Louise Conroy, a clinical
psychologist and asked her to conduct
an evaluation. Dr. Conroy was not
convinced of the ADHD diagnosis and
suggested Ashley receive an EEG to rule
out epilepsy secondary to traumatic brain
injury. Ashley started displaying very
bizarre behaviors, like leaving Barbie
dolls that she adored broken into pieces,
walking out of her classroom
Within days of the
accident, Ashley started
experiencing memory
problems. Staring off into
space, never
acknowledging her name
when called, and
experiencing nightmares. Teachers
(continued on page 3)
VOLUME 8
PAGE 2
Hawaii Pacific Deaf Blind Project
by Mellanie Lee
ISSUE 1
PAGE 7
`Ohana Corner
Aloha, Talofa, Iakwe, Len Wo, Kaselehlie, Rannim Mogethin, Alii, Hafa Adai to ALL of you dear readers. We are the Hawai`i & Pacific Deaf-Blind Project (HPDB) and we provide free technical assistance to children and youth ages 0-21 who
are deaf-blind, their families and service providers in Hawai`i and across the Pacific. Our technical assistance can be in
home and school support consulting,
connecting to resources and trainings.
What does “deaf-blind” mean? Deafblindness means a combined hearing
and vision loss that affects a child’s
ability to access information and communicate. Most deaf-blind children are
not totally deaf and totally blind, they
are able to see and/or hear some. The
majority of children also have additional
disabilities that include physical and/
or cognitive development. This very
small percentage of children who are
Deaf WorldTeach Volunteers and our lovely Pacific Deaf Blind liaisons
(continued on page 8)
Age of Advancement in Technology
I
nnovation and
technology advancement in quality screening is what LDAH
has learned exists in our newest piece of equipment we use
for vision screening. The Plusoptix Digital Vision Screener is
used by our qualified Screeners to check your child’s eyes to
identify some conditions which reduce acuity, one of which is
refractive error. These results tell a doctor what vision
difficulty is present and how they can correct the vision with
glasses. It is an accurate, non-invasive way to detect a
variety of vision disorders in children. Visual acuity is the
distance at which a child can see clearly, but does not identify
vision difficulty. Refraction eyes are capable of taking a good
clear picture. Plusoptix identifies some conditions which
cause reduced acuity. It takes moments for the device to
by Gregory Kim
screen your child’s eyes and produce immediate results for
your review.
Floyd Masga, Junnie Masga, Jennifer Tanaka.
Rita Castro with Rosie Rowe
F
Teachers of Samoana High School with Tara Hasegawa
inding diamonds in the rough is what LDAH accomplished in 2016 by locating and partnering with many
parents, families, professionals, cultures and communities looking for a better opportunity for their children with disabilities across the U.S.-affiliated Pacific Islands. We have the pleasure of working alongside parents, professionals and their families in villages from American Samoa, Palau, Guam, Marshall Islands and the Federated States of
Micronesia who are passionate about improving special education for their children. Our hope in 2017, would be to finalize a partnership with the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana islands to bring opportunity and shared vision for children with disabilities and their families and be 100% fully operational throughout the Pacific jurisdictions.
The ABC’s of possible eye problems in children are:
1. Appearance: eyes crossed, turning in or out, reddened
eyes, watery eyes, encrusted eyelids, frequent styes.
2. Behavior: body rigidity while looking at distant objects,
placing head close to a book or desk, avoiding close
work, excessive blinking, tending to rub eyes, squinting,
head tilting, closing or covering one eye.
3. Complaints: clumsiness, headaches, nausea or
dizziness, burning or itching of eyes, sees blur when
looking up from close work, seeing objects double, undue
sensitivity to light.
Make an appointment with LDAH to have your child’s vision
screened and be ready for the 2017-2018 school year.
Francesca Morei-Misech, Palau Parents Empowered
Josie of Guam Parents Empowering Parents with Rosie Rowe
VOLUME 8
PAGE 6
Think About It!!
O
by Rosie Rowe, Education & Training Coordinator
Determination of Placement
nce an IEP has been developed for a student with a disability, a placement team, described in the
IDEA as a “group of persons, including the parents, and other person’s knowledgeable about the
child, the meaning of the evaluation data, and the placement options,” must determine an appropriate placement where
the student’s IEP can be implemented.
34CFR 300.116
Significantly, IDEA 1997 officially incorporated the parents as members of the placement team for the first time. This
provision was carried over to IDEA 2006 and the 2006 final implementation regulations. Previously, parent participation
in the placement process was neither specifically required nor prohibited, meaning that the existence of such a right was
previously determined as a matter of state law.
2016 LRP Publications OSEP Handbook-Second Edition
Donna Do-Rite
Dear Donna:
Dear Diploma vs. Certificate of Completion,
I have a 16 year old daughter
who has an IEP and is
failing her math and
language arts class. I was
told by her teacher she would
need to pass these classes or
have to graduate
with a certificate of
completion instead
of a diploma. Can
they do that?
I’m wondering if your daughter’s IEP is providing the
appropriate support for her in those classes? Go back and
review your daughter’s IEP and look at the PLEP. What does
it say about language arts and math? Does she need a
certain type of instruction that meets her unique needs? Is the
PLEP written so that you can identify how she learns. If so,
follow the document to the goals and objectives. How does it
target her learning? Now, look at the back page, find box 21,
what does it say? There should be a list of supplementary aids
and services designed for school personnel to meet your
daughter’s needs.
Diploma vs
Certificate
If you are unsure of how to review your IEP, schedule an IEP
meeting and address these questions. In addition, your
daughter can continue to receive a diploma with a supportive
IEP, but her delivery of services must meet her needs. Looks
like her IEP Team members, including her teacher, need to be
sure they are providing the supports she needs.
ISSUE 1
-Tragedy
PAGE 3
Team LDAH
by Rosie Rowe
(continued from page 1)
and off school campus without being noticed. Her Dad
would found her chewing on her clothes, crying
underneath a tree with no memory of how she got there.
At that time, Ashley’s 2nd grade teacher was sure she
would never amount to anything. In her words, “she was
unteachable.” Ashley’s Ritalin increased as a result of
these bizarre behaviors, but I was determined to find an
answer as I watched her medication turn her into a
zombie.
We finally were introduced to Dr. Jose Foradada III, a
pediatric neurologist, who diagnosed Ashley with
Epilepsy secondary to Traumatic Brain Injury. Ashley
had complex partial, absence, and grand mal seizures as
a result of the brain injury from the car accident. Ashley’s
Ritalin was replaced with Tegretol to help manage her
seizures. She was finally on the right path both
academically and medically. Over time, she was found
eligible for special education services and needed
encouragement to learn to cope with her disability. Her
teachers never understood her disability.
Jennifer Chan
Parent Consultant
Ashley is now a successful mother and a full time college
student seeking a Doctor of Nursing Science at
University of Oklahoma. She is able to attend classes
with her peers and received Principal’s Honor Roll and
Vice Principal’s Honor Roll through her first two years.
She dreams of becoming a motivational speaker for
schools on never giving up. She would like to tell others,
“it is not what people say about you, it is how you let
them affect your life!”
Sincerely,
Donna Do-Rite
Ashley Robinson, Age: 3
Trixy Tambaoan
Community Care Worker
PAGE 4
VOLUME 8
ISSUE 1
PAGE 5
Breanna Fetters, Tara Hasegawa
Melissa Hebert, Merimed Foundation
Gregory Kim , Michael Bennett
Kaili Murbach, Breanna Fetters
Judi Coats, Moana Garcia
Mellanie Lee, Floyd Masga
TMC Guest, Susan and Earl Okumura
Dr. Johnson, Dr. Hong, Tara Hasegawa, Rosie Rowe, Beverly Reidy, Marsha Robinson, Debbie Kobayakawa, Breanna Fetters, Jen Chan
Kauhale Building Halloween Parade
Augie T, Shawn Garnett
Robin Hermance, Trixy Tambaoan
Dustin Park
Marsha Robinson, Developmental Screening
Ian Neblas