From preschool to beauty school, Char-Em provides updates on programs and services

HARBOR SPRINGS — From preschool to cosmetology school, the Charlevoix-Emmet Intermediate School District helps local students find their place in the classroom.

The Harbor Springs Public Schools Board of Education received an update from Char-Em ISD at a recent meeting on the various services they offer.

ISD Superintendent Scott Koziol noted enrollment numbers in the 11 districts, five private schools and two charter schools in the ISD’s service region. A total of 1,500 students participate in the ISD’s Career Technical Education programs.

New to the line-up this year is a cosmetology program, which is hosted by Harbor Springs.

Koziol said it was really cool to get the cosmetology program going, especially after some scheduling issues.

Koziol was joined at the meeting by Lauren Ringle, the ISD’s special education coordinator, and Jill Haan, director of Early Childhood.

Ringle and Haan spoke about the support and services available, and the collaboration that takes place within their departments.

Haan said the ISD provides introductory services and special education support for children from birth to age 3. These services are called ‘early’ and include home visits. In addition, the ISD supports students aged 3 to 5 in kindergarten classrooms.

For families who choose not to enroll their students in preschool, they can opt for “drop-in services,” which give the child the opportunity to be with students of a similar age group and still receive special education care, Haan said.

Ringle added that there is a lot of collaboration between the two departments. The ISD helps hire services such as occupational and physical therapists, school psychologists, speech and language specialists and more.

The ISD also offers services at the Taylor School, and programming supports students into adulthood.

“We are truly committed to working on behalf of our districts and in partnership with them to best serve our students with disabilities,” Ringle said.

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Voters in Char-Em’s service areas approved a 1.4606 millage request during the May elections earlier this year.

Through the state, school districts can receive up to 40% reimbursement for special education services. Char-Em uses millage money and other dollars to increase reimbursement to 90%, Koziol said.

“The reason we do that is so that hiring people to provide services that children need is not a barrier,” he said. “We don’t want finances to be a barrier to this. We want to ensure that our children in Char-Em receive the services they need.”

– Contact reporter Karly Graham at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at @KarlyGrahamJRN.

This article originally appeared in The Petoskey News-Review: From preschool to beauty school, Char-Em provides updates on programs and services