Local elementary school receives recognition for inclusive practices

Salem Hyde Elementary School in Syracuse has received a state grant and recognition as one of just 23 model schools in the state for inclusive special education. School staff and administration will celebrate their new honor with a banner-raising ceremony at 3:15 p.m., March 10 in the Salem Hyde library.

The New York State Education Department Office of Special Education has named Salem Hyde as one of its S3TAIR mentor schools for inclusive special education service delivery. S3TAIR is a federal, grant-funded state project designed to improve outcomes for students with disabilities by helping educators increase skills in literacy, positive behavior intervention and special education instruction. The project’s mid-state regional operation is housed at Syracuse University’s School of Education.

Tom Bull, S3TAIR project regional field facilitator and a doctoral student in the special education program at the School of Education, says Salem Hyde’s delivery of inclusive education benefits all children in the school, not just those with special needs.

“The goal of the S3TAIR Project is to identify educational practices that can serve as models for other to replicate,” says Bull, a former teacher in the Liverpool School District. “The collaborative inclusive model that has been created at Salem Hyde, in conjunction with Syracuse University, is a perfect example of a special education service delivery model that allows all students to have their needs met in the general education setting, benefits the entire school community and has the potential to be a powerful resource for other schools throughout New York state.”

Salem Hyde has been established as a technical assistance site and will now provide resources and support to schools in need of assistance or intervention as they work toward implementation of similar inclusive practices.

In addition to Salem Hyde, six other schools in the mid-state region have been recognized as having effective practices in one of the S3TAIR Project’s three focus areas. Those schools are: Sandy Creek Central School District K-12; J.E. Lanigan Elementary School in the Fulton City School District; Roberts K-8 School in the Syracuse City School District; A.A. Gates Elementary School in the Port Byron Central School District; and Charlotte Kenyon Intermediate School and John Harshaw Elementary School in the Chenango Forks Central School District.