School District U-46 employee says district supports professional growth and special-education programming

Allison Hale, a district behavior specialist and board-certified behavior analyst at School District U-46, said the district supports employee professional development and uses specialized programming to help students with disabilities prepare for life after school.

Hale, who said she previously worked as a school social worker in the district, told the meeting transcript: “Our district has so many diverse opportunities to work with a variety of different populations of students, work in different professional roles throughout the district, and it really is committed to the professional trajectory of the people who work here.”

Hale described her own career path as an example. She said the district and her administration supported her as she pursued a second master’s degree in applied behavior analysis and became a board-certified behavior analyst. “I started as a social worker and the district supported me, my administration supported me as I went on to get another master's degree in applied behavior analysis and become a board certified behavior analyst,” she said.

On special education services, Hale said the district offers “unique programming to help close gaps, teach them life skills, teach them vocational skills, teach them social emotional skills, and academic skills that are going to prepare them for a life beyond what we're able to provide, through special education through the age of 22.”

Her remarks in the transcript emphasized two points: that district-supported professional development benefits staff career growth and, in turn, students; and that the district provides a range of special-education programming aimed at transition skills for students with disabilities through age 22. The transcript does not state specific program names, budget amounts, or dates for those programs.

No formal actions, motions, or votes on these topics appear in the provided transcript excerpt.