Resident of Raymond receives Special Education Administrator of the Year award

Lisa Caron, Director of Special Services in MSAD 61, has been awarded Special Education Administrator of the Year for 2017 by the Maine Administrators of Services for Children with Disabilities (MADSEC).  Mrs. Caron was nominated by her Regional Group of Special Education Directors due to her creative and extensive programming to ensure student needs in her district are met in the least restrictive setting in their home schools. She believes providing appropriate training and equipping staff with the skills and tools they need to educate students, is the key to student learning and achievement.  
 

Caron on left receives award from Pat Menzel

In addition to her job as the Director of Special Services and District 504 Coordinator, Caron also serves on MADSEC’s Professional Development Committee and as the alternative regional representative for the MADSEC Executive Board. She is the Special Education Administrator representative for the Central Cumberland County Administrator Certification Committee.  

During her thirteen years in MSAD 61, Caron has facilitated training in researched based programming for her staff to meet the needs of district students.  This includes previously being the only school district in Maine to establish a Lindamood Bell School Partnership for four years, the first school district in Maine to bring Behavior Analyst Technician Training to the Special Services staff, and enhancing learning opportunities for her students and staff with technology, by providing professional development to staff to increase academic rigor for students in the district. Caron was an active participant in bringing Positive Behavior and Supports training to MSAD 61.  

Caron has been described as, “. . . a forward thinker whose decisions are always student centered—be it budget, curriculum, personnel, or professional development.”  Since she started in the district, she has grown two day treatment programs to four, addressing the specific and unique needs of students with Autism Spectrum Disorders and/or significant behavioral and mental health challenges.  

Finally, Caron is a reflective leader, who with the support of her superintendent and building administrators, most recently led an initiative in MSAD 61 to push a co-teaching model, which benefits both regular and special education students and staff.  Breaking down the walls between these programs and maintaining a focus on what is best for all students is a worthwhile goal and one that Lisa championed.   

Caron was honored during the MADSEC Director’s Academy at the end of June.