Janet

M. Ed-Special Education, M.Ed.-Secondary Transition, Transition Specialist | West San Gabriel Valley Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA) Instructional Specialist

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Janet Barakat is committed to educating students, colleagues, families, and the community through establishing strong connections. She holds a Master's Degree in Special Education, Secondary Transition from the University of Kansas (2018),
a Master's Degree in Special Education from Azusa Pacific University (2007), and a Bachelor's Degree in Business, Marketing from California State University, Fullerton (1980). She worked for Hallmark Cards as a Sales Representative before she became an educator in 2007. She taught 6th-8th grade special education mathematics, science, and reading until 2014. She held the position of Special Education Department Chair from 2009-2014.

In 2014 she became a Transition Specialist for Pomona Unified School District and developed a secondary transition program for students with disabilities in grades six through twelve. She has served as a professional development speaker training teachers, administrators, and paraprofessionals on secondary transition, writing standards-based Individual Education Plans, Non-violent Crisis Intervention Prevention, and Behavior Intervention Plans. She has also taken an active role in the community, developing interagency partnerships. In July of 2019, she took a position as a Program Specialist for the West San Gabriel Valley Special Education Local Plan Area. In this role, she works with 14 school districts to provide policy, guidance, and training to their district staff. Janet firmly believes that success in education is about building relationships.