Parents in Partnership (PIP)

The Parents In Partnership program (PIP) is a four- or five-part leadership opportunity for parents, foster parents, or other care givers who have children, 6-14 years old, or youth 13-21 years old with special needs. Parents will have the opportunity to develop leadership skills, support networks, and positive parent-professional partnerships. You will meet with parents, educators, state agency personnel, and other statewide leaders over the course of these five sessions. You will also have time to share your own stories, obtain useful information, and strengthen skills that will enable you to communicate more effectively with educational, medical, and human service providers.

Topic areas may include IDEA and the special education process, policymaking, citizen participation, and community inclusion of youth with special needs. Participants will share information about resources, collaborative teams, advocacy, and conflict management skills.

This program is funded by the Wisconsin Statewide Parent-Educator Initiative (WSPEI), through an IDEA Discretionary Grant from the Department of Public Instruction (DPI).

Parents In Partnership will:

• Coordinate speakers based on the needs of the group and may include policy making, citizen participation, and school/community inclusion of youth with special needs
• Support parents to enable attendance by covering meals and offering a small stipend to help offset child care and travel expenses
• Encourage parents to become active participants in their child's education and community by assisting parents to choose an activity that will create a positive change
• Support parent-professional collaboration by offering the unique opportunity to bring parents and school staff together for one weekend to explore relevant topics

What Does it Cost?

We ask that parents make a commitment to attend all sessions (four or five weekends). In return for your time and energy, the Parents in Partnership program will cover your meals and costs of providing the training. (Other family members may join but you will be responsible for all of their expenses.) Reimbursement for a portion of child care and travel expenses is available for each of the sessions.

Registration

If you are a parent, or care giver of a child/young adult who has a disability and want to be part of this exciting partnership, register soon! Partnership sessions are limited to 25 participants. People selected for Partnership commit themselves to attend all sessions. Sessions begin promptly at 4:00p.m. on Friday and end at 4:00p.m. on Saturday. We encourage couples to participate together, if possible. Single parents are welcome to bring a support person with them to participate in our program, provided this person shares responsibility for your child.

Dates	Location	Brochure Link
October 24-25, 2008 December 5-6, 2008 January 30-31, 2009 March 6-7, 2009 April 3-4, 2009	Country Inn & Suites, Green Bay East	Parents in Partnership
October 24-25, 2008 December 5-6, 2008 January 23-24, 2009 March 6-7, 2009 April 17-18, 2009	Holiday Inn Express, Wauwatosa	Parents in Partnership
October 24-25, 2008 December 12-13, 2008 January 16-17, 2009 February 20-21, 2009 March 20-21, 2009 May 1-2, 2009	Wintergreen Resort and Conference Center, Wisconsin Dells	YiPPE
September 19-20, 2008 November 7-8, 2008 January 23-24, 2009 March 13-14, 2009 May 8-9, 2009	Facilities on Green Lake	PALs

Still Wondering if Parents in Partnership is Right for You?

If you answer "yes" to more than one of these following questions,

• Do you enjoy getting together with other families from around Wisconsin to share information, support, and resources?
• Are you interested in meeting statewide leaders to ask your questions about issues which are important to you and your family?
• Would you like to enhance your skills for working in partnership with service providers, public schools, and community agencies?

Then you should register! Please see the Parent Training Calendar for more detailed information about these sessions.

For questions about this information, contact Patricia A. Bober (608) 266-5194

Last updated on 5/5/2008 1:08:21 PM