Welcome to the San Mateo County SELPA website

Our mission is to support special education students in achieving a high level of academic and functional performance according to national, state, and local standards.  To assure this outcome, and because we believe that all students can learn, thrive and become great contributing members of society by providing them with equal educational opportunities, we are dedicated to provide information, resources and support to students, parents, and school staff.  Additionally, the SELPA office collaborates with county agencies and LEAs (Local Educational Agencies) to develop and maintain healthy and enriching environments in which students with special needs and their families can succeed.

What is a SELPA?

 

In 1977, all school districts and county offices were mandated to form consortiums in geographical regions of sufficient size and scope to provide for all special education service needs of children residing within the region boundaries. Each region, Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA), developed a local plan describing how it would provide special education services.

California currently has 136 SELPAs, ranging in size from those serving fewer than 1,000 students to those serving more than 10,000 students. The San Mateo County SELPA, serving over 10,000 students, is one of the larger SELPAs in the State of California.

Each SELPA must have an Administrative Unit (AU) which is the legal entity that receives funds and is responsible for seeing that every eligible child receives appropriate services. The AU for the San Mateo County SELPA is the San Mateo County Office of Education which provides a variety of instructional, business, and consulting services that enhance the ability of districts to provide quality education.

What are the Goals of SELPA?

The goals of the SELPA for students with disabilities are:

  • to assure that appropriate programs and services are provided to meet the student's needs, 
  • to ensure a free and appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment,
  • to ensure that the student has the tools necessary to achieve, at a level commensurate to his/her ability, his/her highest potential, and
  • to assure that each student is equally integrated within, and has access to, the district's core curriculum and extracurricular activities, as appropriately determined by his/her Individualized Education Plan (IEP) team.

SELPA is also committed to foster public support for special education through the maintenance of a strong position of child advocacy and cost-effective procedures to maximize the quantity and quality of services and programs for the benefit of the students.

Additional information about the role of SELPA in special education can be found at www.cde.ca.gov.

Learn More...

SELPA Office

Email: selpa@smcoe.org

Phone: (650) 802-5306

Mary Yung, Ed.D.

Executive Director, SELPA

Lauren Berlin

Coordinator

Lansiné Touré

Coordinator

Eugenie Obina

Student Services Specialist

Janeen Zertuche

Program Compliance Analyst

Tricia Felix

Administrative Assistant III