IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Mark Stefan: 952-278-3109 or cell 763-443-8240
AbleNet Honors Three School Districts With Star Award for Excellence in Best Use of Assistive Technology
Minneapolis, Minn. (March 29, 2007) - AbleNet, Inc., a leading provider of assistive technology products for students with disabilities, will present the Star Award for Excellence in Assistive Technology to three school districts for the most creative inclusion of AbleNet's Star Reporter™, a comprehensive curricular program designed to improve student achievement.
The awards will be presented in the rotunda at the Minnesota State Capitol on April 11, 2007, at 1:00 p.m. The capitol is located at 75 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. in St. Paul, Minn.
The three district awards will be presented to Linda Nelson, Special Education Coordinator at Osseo ISD #279; Cathy Carr, District Program Facilitator for the DCD Program, Minneapolis Public Schools; and Carol Newman SLP, Shakopee District #720. Teachers to receive the award in their respective districts are Joy Carlson and Carey Raph of the Osseo School District; Cathy Lemon, Naomi Jones-Staricka, Gretchen Homme and Curt Quiner of the Minneapolis Public Schools; and Katie Armendariz and Meridith Alms of the Shakopee School District.
"Our collaborations with school districts have increased the visibility and potential of students with disabilities," affirms Cheryl Volkman, CEO and co-founder of AbleNet, Inc. "Together, we have created new ways for them to be meaningfully engaged in making their school community a diversely valuable place to learn. In the process, AbleNet has learned how to improve our products and curriculums and continues to dream big for the benefit of all."
36 schools and 46 classrooms have been using the AbleNet Star Reporter program for two or more years in the three school districts. The classrooms are learning environments designed for students with significant to moderate disabilities. These students are also integrated into other classroom opportunities as designed by their educational teams.
The Star Reporter program, developed in 2000, provides the structure that allows schools to create a newspaper every month. Daily lessons are based on themes, article sections and teacher strategies for daily supports. The lessons are equipped with technology options for actions - interview, ask, vote, produce, cut - the students need to take to create the newspaper. Symbols and scripts are designed specifically for each lesson. The level of detail is designed so that teachers and classroom support staff have more time to teach and all students are engaged in learning with the use of technology.
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- Provide embedded technology so that all students, regardless of their disability, are important players in creating a tangible outcome on a regular basis;
- Provide learning "how to use" technology in the context of progressive teaching strategies;
- Provide a structure that makes teaching fun and easy;
- Provide a context that makes learning fun, challenging and aligned with general education so that all students in the school are appropriately engaged in learning together; and
- Provide ways to collect data so that differentiated instruction helps all students improve their performance.
About Assistive Technology
Assistive Technology includes assistive, adaptive, and rehabilitative devices that promote greater independence for people with disabilities. Universal accessibility, or universal design, is an example of comprehensive assistive technology that translates into excellent usability for all people. A prime example are the rampways that are cut into curbs, allowing easy access onto sidewalks for people in wheelchairs as well as parents with strollers and travellers using wheeled suitcases.
About AbleNet
AbleNet offers a complete line of assistive technology products, including communication aids for non-verbal students, and access aids, such as switches and wheelchair mounting devices for students who require physical supports. The company is also recognized for developing research-based special education curricula that meet state and federal mandates. Located in Roseville, Minnesota, AbleNet is an ESOP company that sells its products through a network of distributors in more than 50 countries. AbleNet's products and programs have been used in tens of thousands of classrooms nationally for more than 20 years. For more information, visit www.ablenetinc.com.
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