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WELCOME!
The
Macomb Intermediate School
District’s (MISD) Parent Advisory Committee (PAC) is a group comprised of
parents of special needs children, volunteers and educators. The PAC is
available to parents of special needs children to:
■
assist parents
with the special education process by answering questions about special
education rules and regulations;
■
mentor and
educate parents;
■
build positive
relationships with schools;
■
provide input
relating to legislative issues;
■
network with
other PACs throughout the state, and
■
the PAC meets
monthly at the MISD, and parents and visitors are welcome to attend the meetings
(CLICK HER FOR THE CURRENT MEETING SCHEDULE).
PAC has been successful in their goal to involve more
parents in the past year and hopes to continue that effort this year. Your
involvement in the PAC is crucial to our success! Below is a short biography for
each PAC Leadership Team Member:
Shannon DeRey
is the representative for
Anchor
Bay School District. She is married and has two sons, Daniel and Brendan, a
daughter, Sophia, and three step-daughters. Daniel has Asperger’s Syndrome and
is the reason Shannon has been a member of the PAC since 2004. She recently
graduated from Wayne State University with a bachelor’s degree in elementary
education. Shannon’s main role on the leadership team is to facilitate the
monthly meetings.
Deborah Yoho
is the representative for the Romeo Community School District. She has been
married to her husband Dean for 19 years and has two wonderful children. Her
eldest son Dean Jr. is a senior at Romeo High School, and her younger son Darren
is a freshman. Darren has autism and is the one who brought Deb to the Parent
Advisory Committee in 2001. Deb Co-Chaired the PAC in the 2004-2005 year and
hopes to help educate parents who have special needs children. She is looking
forward to continuing her work with the leadership team this year and will be
responsible for keeping minutes at each meeting.
Charisse
Cossu-Kowalski
is the representative for the Fraser School District. She is married with four
children. Two of Charisse’s children receive special education services. Her
oldest has attachment challenges, probable pre-natal exposure to alcohol and
learning disabilities; her second oldest has fetal alcohol syndrome and
cognitive delays. Charisse joined the PAC in 2002 and is also involved with the
MCFARES (Macomb County Fetal Alcohol Resource Education and Support) Coalition,
the LICC (Local Interagency Coordinating Council), and activities at her church.
She used to be a program supervisor working with mentally ill adults living in
adult foster care homes, but currently is a stay-at-home mom. Charisse is
responsible for internet communications for the PAC.
PAC’s newest member is
Sandy Coleman. Sandy is the representative
for the South Lake School District. She has been involved with the Parent
Advisory Committee since 2004. Sandy is married with three sons. One son is a
senior at Oakland University; one son is a junior at the University of Michigan,
and her youngest son is a junior at South Lake High School and is the reason she
is a member. He has Bi-polar, Epilepsy, ODD and ADHD. Sandy is a personal
medical manager and has enjoyed her job for the last 19 years. She is excited
about her new role on the PAC Leadership Team and looks forward to continuing
the work that is so important for our children. Sandy’s main role with the PAC
is to oversee the sub-committees.
The MISD-PAC strives to
make the educational experiences of all children the best they can be and hopes
to make this year even better than the last.
Thank you for taking the time to learn more about the
PAC.
Hope to see you at a
meeting soon!
Sincerely,
Your
PAC Leadership Team
Shannon, Deb, Charisse and Sandy |
