Chatham Rotary’s noon meeting on January 15 featured an extremely interesting and informative program presented by Ms. Robin Haymore, who currently serves as Associate Superintendent for Support Services at Pittsylvania County Schools. Previously, she was a Director of Special Education and is a Nationally Certified School Psychologist. Robin began her career as a Special Education teacher and has extensive experience in both inclusive and self-contained classroom settings specializing in Early Childhood and Elementary Education. As an advocate for educational reform, Ms. Haymore has a wealth of experiential knowledge in the areas of Multiple-Tiered Systems of Supports, Data-Informed Decision Making, Academic and Behavioral Intervention. Dr. Mark Jones, Superintendent of Education for Pittsylvania County and a Chatham Rotarian introduced Ms. Haymore.
Ms. Haymore’s discussion covered the new and highly effective educational program initiated for selected elementary students in the county’s school system. The program, Ready for Success (RFS),based in Chatham at the old National Guard Armory which has been repurposed to house the innovative service delivery model providing brief, intensive therapeutic intervention to elementary students in grades Kindergarten through 5th who are experiencing social, emotional and/or behavioral challenges. The RFS Program goal is to teach appropriate replacement behaviors and return students to their base-school within a specific period of time. This presentation addressed the RFS structure, curriculum, progress data, and financial implications. Success of this innovative program has been demonstrated by the students who have completed the prescribed courses and returned to their schools for continued successful mainstream education.
