15th Annual Education Law Conference

Hearing Officers (only) Academy

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Featured Biography: Jim Gerl

James Gerl, Esq. has been a hearing officer and mediator for over two decades and national trainer and consultant to numerous departments of education in special education. He is certified through the National Association of Hearing Officials NAHO and has trained hearing officers for all 50 states, D.C., the BIE, DoDEA and a few territories through trainings at NAHO, the National Judicial College, LRP and the CADRE Symposium. He is a former administrative law judge for the Illinois Human Rights Commission and is presently also a hearing officer for the Division of Rehabilitation. He is a partner in the law firm of Scotti & Gerl in Lewisburg, WV and writes a blog on special education law, http://specialeducationlawblog.blogspot.com/.

With thanks to the ADVISORY Committee for this Academy

Pamela Kraynak, Esq., Senior Program Associate, Northeast Regional Resource Center, Chair
Susan Boyd, Legal Office Administrator, VT Department of Education
Sarah Browning, Esq., Special Assistant to the Commissioner, NH Department of Education
Cynthia Hoenes-Saindon, Coordinator of Dispute Resolution, NJ Department of Education
Richard Connolly, Esq., Director of Bureau of Special Education Appeals, MA Department of Education
Pauline Lamontagne, Esq., Due Process Coordinator, ME Department of Education
Susan Parks, Affirmative Action, ME Department of Education
Sarah E. Redfield, Consultant and Chair, 15th Annual Education and Law Conference

All Wednesday morning Conference workshops are open to all HO attendees. Those dealing with special ed-related issues are listed here.

Wednesday
Wednesday Keynote	WAM00 Keynote: Television & Education Robert M. Lippincott, Senior Vice President Education, PBS Education, Arlington, VA
Wednesday Workshop 1	WAM03 Resolving Special Education Disputes [Special ed] Scott F. Johnson, Esq., Education Law Resource Center CONCORD, NH
Wednesday Workshop 1	WAM04 Civil Rights Teams WORK [Civil Rights / Liability / Special Ed] Thom Harnett, Esq., Asst. Attorney General, Maine Attorney General's Office, Augusta, ME
Wednesday Workshop 1	WAM05A New Developments in Special Education Eligibility [Special ed] Mark Weber, Esq., Professor, Depaul University College of Law, Chicago, IL
Hearing Officer Academy Separate Sessions After Lunch
12:15-1:15 PM	Networking lunch with all conference participants Please join your colleagues from other states; tables will be reserved
1:15-1:30 PM	Welcome and Opening of Hearing Officer Sessions Pamela C. Kraynak, Sr. Program Associate for West Ed, Northeast Regional Resource Center At West Ed, Williston, VT
1:30-2:30 PM	Trends in Dispute Resolution in Special Education: How Due Process Hearings Fit into IDEA's Conflict Management System Lisa Pagano, Education Program Specialist, Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education
2:45-4:00 PM	Special Ed Law Update Mark Weber, Esq., Professor, DePaul Univeristy College of Law, Chicago, IL
4:00-5:00 PM	Views on Appeals Richard Connolly, Esq., Director of MA Bureau of Special Education Appeals, Moderator Judge, TBA
6:00 PM	Dinner Dutch, a group reservation will be facilitated.
Thursday
8:00-8:45 AM	Continental breakfast available with other conference participants
8:45-9:00 AM	Welcome and Orientation to Day 2 Pamela C. Kraynak, Sr. Program Associate for West Ed, Northeast Regional Resource Center At West Ed, Williston, VT
9:00-10:30 AM	Decision Writing: Review of Good Principles James D. Gerl, Esq., Scotti & Gerl, Lewisburg, WV
10:45-11:45 AM	New Hearing Officer Coaching Session (Session 1) James D. Gerl, Esq., Scotti & Gerl, Lewisburg, WV
10:45-11:45 AM	Experienced Hearing Officers Exchange Session (Session 2) Moderator, tba, NJ Administrative Law Judge
12:00-1:15 PM	Informal Networking Lunch with Conference Participants
1:15-2:15 PM	Ruling on Objections Roleplay James D. Gerl, Esq., Scotti & Gerl, Lewisburg, WV
2:15-3:15 PM	Understanding Part C Kala Surprenant, Esq., OSEP Office of General Counsel Sarah Forster, Assistant Attorney General, Counsel to Department of Education, State of Maine, Moderator
3:30-4:30 PM	Response to Intervention (RTI) in the Education World Dr. Richard Reid, Green Mountain Psycho-educational Services, Jericho, VT
4:30-5:00 PM	The Last Word Roundtable Sarah Browning, Esq., Special Asst. to the Commissioner, NH Department of Education, Concord, NH Sarah Redfield, Esq., Chair, 15th Annual Education Law Conference Pamela C. Kraynak, Sr. Program Associate for West Ed, Northeast Regional Resource Center At West Ed, Williston, VT