Page 12 - FDLRS Focus - Winter 2020

FIN (Florida Inclusion Network)

During the 2019-2020 school year, Florida Inclusion
Network has been making continued strides relating to
inclusive practices in Palm Beach County. As a follow
up to the completion of the Best Practices for Inclusive
Education meetings that took place during the
previous year at every school in the district, schools
have worked to prioritize inclusion in a variety of
different capacities. Collaborative teaching trainings,
support facilitation trainings, technical assistance,
and individual support continues to take place on
an ongoing basis at schools in all four regions of Palm Beach County. Additionally FIN has partnered with
Speech Language Pathologist leads in all four regions to deliver ongoing professional development to SLPs
related to inclusive service delivery model. FIN also has once again worked directly with the ESE Curriculum
Team, FTE, the Multicultural Department, and the MTSS team to provide inclusive scheduling training at
schools all over the county.

In addition to continued training and
support to promote inclusive practices,
Palm Beach County has enjoyed a
massive expansion of Peers as Partners
in Learning programs across the district.
As of February 2020, Palm Beach
County has the most PPL programs in the state, an elective course that allows students to mentor and support a
student with a disability both academically and socially. This program has also expanded into middle schools.
As a result, more students have been given a chance to lead by example relating to acceptance and inclusion
on their secondary campuses. FIN has even partnered with special day schools such as the Royal Palm School,
to link their students with PPL mentors from comprehensive campuses to ensure that inclusive opportunities
are provided to all students in Palm Beach County.

For more information contact Bryan Russell
(FIN) bryan.russell@palmbeachschools.org

Page 12 FDLRS Focus