Susanne Cuatt

The current Learning Specialist of Education at Roseburg High School in Oregon, Susanne Cuatt has been working with children with special needs at the school since August 2008. Ms. Cuatt earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Education from the University of Texas at Austin and her Master of Science, also in Education, from Portland State University in Oregon. Ms. Cuatt then spent five years teaching students who are deaf; she is fluent in American Sign Language.

In her present position working with high school students, Susanne Cuatt has helped students with disabilities increase their reading scores by 60% and meet statewide benchmark levels. One of her main goals as a special education staff member consists in helping students reach national and state levels of achievement and continue on to more advanced classes. Ms. Cuatt administers learning assessments and then evaluates the results to determine the specific areas of need for each individual student. Ms. Cuatt will then design specialized learning materials and lesson plans, all aimed at improving individual areas.

Outside of her teaching duties, Susanne Cuatt serves on the District Curriculum Committee. The Committee decides which curriculum to adopt for intervention classes at the elementary through high school levels. These interventions address social skills as well as academic issues. Ms. Cuatt also sits on her school’s Literacy Committee, which addresses the school’s literacy needs, implements best practices, and organizes a literacy week. The literacy week promotes all forms of literacy including cultural literacy.

Susanne Cuatt also belongs to her school’s Positive Intervention Support team. The team’s role consists in bringing the school to at least 80% healthy core, which means that 80% of the students meet benchmark levels and require no other interventions. The team designs interventions based on past assessments, grading, and teaching practices. A subcommittee will then look more closely at each of these elements and present its findings to the larger committee, which will implement changes as needed. All this comprises part of the school’s efforts to put into practice the Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports philosophy being implemented at schools across the country.