SEPTA-About Us

Our Mission

The mission of the Westport SEPTA is to advocate in an informed and positive manner on a broad-based community level for the welfare of families and children with special needs.

Our focus is not only on educational programs but on community needs as well.

We believe that quality of life and self-esteem issues are not just the job of the schools but families and community organizations as well.

We believe in fostering strong community ties and training for families by partnering with community leaders.

What's a SEPTA?
	Westport SEPTA is a unit of the Connecticut Parent Teacher Association (PTA), one of the constituent organizations of the National PTA. Connecticut PTA is comprised of over 260 units, including school PTAs and special interest groups such as SEPTAs (Special Education PTAs).
	The school-based PTAs are concerned with educational and enrichment issues for all children in the district. The PTA Boards of each school include Special Education Representatives who are Special Ed parents. Westport SpEd Parents work as an advisory committee with their school’s administration and with the Westport Schools Director of Pupil Services. They advocate for our children through parent education and support and through special projects, and contribute "SpEd News" to the school newsletters.
	Issue-based SEPTAs can focus on a wider range of matters that specifically affect families and children with special needs. Like a regular PTA, a SEPTA follows state PTA rules and by-laws, collects dues, has elected officers, and holds regular public meetings. Westport SEPTA is one of over a dozen SEPTAs in Connecticut.
	Membership in a school-based PTA and a SEPTA are separate and are not mutually exclusive. We recommend membership in both organizations and support the mission of the school-based PTAs.

What we do

Westport SEPTA is a group of parents, teachers, caregivers and community leaders concerned with the general welfare of children with any type of special need. Membership is not limited to people whose children attend a particular school or who have a particular disability or who have a particular type of educational program. Age of a child is not a factor.

We advocate in these areas: education, community and recreational programs, healthcare, family training and support, social skills training, and any other issues that affect the quality of life of children with any type of special needs. We work with private and public entities that currently offer or should be offering services and support.

We involve ourselves in school matters by participating in committees (like the Survey Committee), and by serving as a resource to the Board of Education on special-education matters. We liaise on a regular basis with the SpEd Parents, an arm of the town wide PTA, to keep on top of special-education school-related issues and offer our input and influence where needed. We educate families on their rights and provide them with information to help them better understand how they can help and protect their children.

For members, we provide a Parent Handbook, informative emails, and access to a network of parents and other concerned people who have an understanding of what parenting and teaching children with a wide variety of special needs is like. For the community, we arrange monthly presentations that cover cover a wide range of topics such as Best Practices in special education, cutting edge therapies, changes in special ed law, financial planning, and much more. We do not provide a member directory. Membership information is confidential and privacy of families is respected.

Join us as a member, and consider taking part in our efforts. Join the Board or a sub-committee, help plan meetings and events, recommend speakers. We welcome everyone who wants to improve the quality of services for children with special needs, regardless of what the needs may be or the disability involved.