End-of-Year Celebration!

OMid-State Special Education held their end-of-year staff meeting and celebration on May 8, 2026. The theme of this year’s celebration was “Throwback to School”. Staff dressed up from the era that they attended school, they submitted school pictures and staff had to guess who was who, and they enjoyed pizza from The Toasty Goat food truck. 4 amazing professionals were awarded the Making a Difference Award. Those recipients were: Lucas Altenberger, School Psychologist for the Litchfield School District, Kassandra Charles, School Psychologist for the Morrisonville, Panhandle, South Fork, and Edinburg School Districts, Karen Bennett (School Social Worker for the Vandalia School District), and Amanda Fritcher (Transition Specialist for the Vandalia, Bond County, Mulberry Grove, Ramsey, St. Elmo, and Brownstown School Districts). The 4 professionals stood out this year by going above and beyond with their contributions to Mid-State, their districts, colleagues, and students. 7 employees were also presented with years of service awards. 5 years- Ingrid Watkins (Executive Secretary), Barb Daugherty (Thrive Principal), and Brianna Taylor (Speech Language Pathologist serving the Litchfield school district). 10 years- Lynnette Milner (Speech Language Pathologist serving the Litchfield school district) and Scarlett Vanzo (School Social Worker serving the Brownstown, Ramsey, St. Elmo, and Mulberry Grove school districts). 20 years- Kristy Haston (School Psychologist serving the Bond County school district) and Nancy Roasio (School Social Worker serving the Litchfield school district). We thank these award recipients for their longevity and dedication to Mid-State and the districts they serve. We were also able to celebrate the upcoming retirement of Laura Snyder, Transition Specialist for Carlinville, Litchfield, Hillsboro, and Panhandle school districts. Laura has been a Transition Specialist for Mid-State for 26 years, serving a total of 31 years in education. She has been a great leader, student advocate, and has been a significant reason why our STEP/PECT contract has grown as much as it has. Lastly, we ended the day with professional development. Star Net presented about Early Childhood Outcomes to staff. This event helped to sharpen our skills on accurately rating early childhood students and their progress.