November/December 2017
Welcome to Our E-Newsetter!
Parent Update from the Executive Director
November 2017

Dear CTC Parents,

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of facilitating a meeting of the  Dad’s group . The four dads who participated had all been active in the group in the past (it was discontinued a couple of years back). The purpose of the group is for CTC dad’s to provide support to each other. They described how helpful the group was to them, especially when their CTC child first started at our school. They have asked me to urge all CTC fathers, and especially those who are new to CTC and have young children at our Fair Lawn campus, to come to our next meeting. The focus of the group’s support to dad’s will be to offer guidance and tips to you from their many years of experience being a parent of a special needs and, in many cases, medically fragile child. They are also willing to set up a buddy system where you can call them any time for support or to answer questions. They also may organize some social gatherings if enough dad’s sign up. The next meeting will be held in January, but we want to get an idea of how many are interested in coming before we set the date and location. Please email me ( kberger@ctcacademy.org ) to let me know if you are interested, which campus you prefer to meet at and the best time during the week.

Another question that came up at the last HSA meeting was regarding CTC staff’s providing babysitting services to CTC students in their homes. CTC itself cannot provide, organize, or support these services. However, that said, and unlike some private schools that do not permit their staff to participate in such arrangements at all, CTC will permit its staff to provide babysitting services as long as it is clear that they are doing so entirely on their own behalf and not on behalf of CTC. I discussed this matter with Denise O’Brien, President of the Home School Association. Denise informed me that up until now she has been informally helping when a parent or guardian e-mails her with a need for a babysitter.  I think this will be an excellent service for our families, but from CTC’s standpoint it’s very important that everyone understand that all CTC staff members who wish to provide this service are doing so on their own and not as CTC employees, that CTC does not in any way provide or supervise these services, and that the interested CTC staff member is responsible for making all necessary arrangements directly with the parent or guardian. If you are a parent or guardian and have need for a babysitter you can either private message Denise O’Brien on the H.S.A. Facebook page or you can e-mail her directly,  the4obriens@optonline.net . We understand the tremendous importance of babysitting to so many CTC families and hope that Denise’s kind offer will work to further help you meet your family’s needs. CTC appreciates your confidence in our staff members’ ability to provide this service in a way that meets the unique needs of our students/your children. Thanks so much Denise!

Finally, as you may know, we are currently going through a strategic planning process. The purpose of this effort is to help us think through where we should be headed next as an organization. A committee of 7 Board members, 3 senior staff and our consultant are leading this effort and then sharing our ongoing progress with the full Board. We are about a third of the way through the 7-month process and have already gathered a tremendous amount of great information. This includes, among other things, a board and management survey, an all staff survey, a parent focus group and one-on-one interviews of a number of experts in the field and key stakeholders of the organization. We hope to have the plan finalized and approved by our full Board in March. We will then be sharing with you the results of this effort. Thanks so much to all the parents who spent an evening with our consultant to help us plan. You provided a tremendous amount of great suggestions and feedback!

As always, don’t hesitate to contact me if there is something that you think requires my attention. My number is 201-797-7440 ext. 3258 and my email is  kberger@ctcacademy.org .

Have a wonderful holiday season!

Regards,

Ken Berger
Executive Director


CHILD CARE
As mentioned in Ken's letter above, Denise O'Brien, Home School Association President, has offered to assist our families in the coordination of child care. Parents/guardians can either PM Denise via the HSA Facebook page or
If you are a CTC parent and wish to join the Home School Association's Facebook page, click HERE and select + Join Group
Disability Awareness Programming @
Oakland Campus!

CTC students at the Oakland campus have an opportunity to participate in a learning experience with peers from local schools. The goal of this program is to provide our students with typical peer models in a safe, fun environment as well as to educate children and adults in the community
about disabilities. Click HERE for a detailed
program description

What People Are Saying About
The Program...

“When are my new friends coming back?”
– Victor, CTC student

“ Wow! The CTC students participate in school subjects just like I do!”
- 2 nd grader, Academy of our Lady

Click HERE for a detailed
program description
Mark Your Calendars
December 1: Respite Night (@OAK)
December 4: Parent Education Series (7pm@FL)
December 12: Mom's Time Out / Yoga & Chat (@FL)
December 19: Holiday Show (@OAK)
December 20: Holiday Show (@FL)
December 25 - January 1 School Closed (@FL and OAK) 

January 2: School Re-Opens (@FL and @OAK)
January 9: Mom's Time Out
January 15: 1pm Dismissal for Students (@FL and @OAK)
January 23: Parent Education Series
January 23: MOVE Exhibition Day 1 (@OAK)
January 25: MOVE Exhibition Day 2 (@OAK)
For Your Safety

Kidde Fire Extinguishers has issued a recall. Please click
the image below for details
Spread The Word!
EEP Open Enrollment
Accepting children ages 18 months through 3 years for our Early Enrichment Program. Please contact Del Marie Alvarez, 201.797.7440 x3230
Tips From The Social Work Department
Special Needs Bowling League

All are welcome to participate in a special needs bowling league.

When: Mondays, 4-5:30pm
Where: Holiday Bowl, Oakland

If interested, contact Gary Pinckney at  glpinckney@yahoo.com  or 908-917-4909

*this event has not been organized or endorsed by
CTC Academy
Tips For Managing Stress During The Holiday Season
*Adapted from APA online articles
The holidays are a time for family, fun and joy, but can be also a time of stress. Keep the following tips in mind during the upcoming holiday season. Click HERE  for full article.
Holiday Gift Giving For Your Special Child
Looking for holiday gift ideas for your child? Don't forget to check out CTC Academy's Adaptive Toys Sugguestions in our Parent Portal!

Click HERE for ideas!

*parent portal is password protected; if you need assistance accessing, please contact info@ctcacademy.org
Your Amazon Shopping
Pays Off!

Supporting CTC Academy when you shop at Amazon is as easy as clicking the image above and selecting CTC Academy as your charity of choice.

With Amazon Smile, 0.5% of the price of your eligible purchases will be donated by Amazon to help our organization. Sign-in once and Amazon will remember CTC Academy for future purchases!
Joining us at the Oakland Campus

Frances Bierwas, Teaching Assistant
Estefany Herrera - Teaching Assistant
Kristen Perkalis - Teacher
Michele Polidoro - Teaching Assistant
Jessica Vicari - Teaching Assistant
Joining us at the Fair Lawn Campus

Lyubov Chernyayeva - Nurse, Health Office
Diana Hernandez - Teaching Assistant
Joselin Pena - Housekeeping
Svitlana Smurygina - Teaching Assistant