Click for a free sample of the PennSTAR Master Curriculum:
4,830 Objectives and 2,719 Activities

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History and Background of the PennSTAR Master Curriculum

The PennSTAR Master Curriculum, as listed at this site, came directly from the PennStar System. While working for the Pennsylvania Department of Education as a Special Education Adviser, I served as head of the team that developed the PennStar System. When I retired in December 1994, PennStar had been discarded. I salvaged the Master Curriculum and am making it available to educators via download and 3.5-inch disk for as little as $19.95.

The PennStar System included two programs which were related yet independent. Both ran on Apple II computers only. Educators could use either or both. PennStar System software written in ProDOS, was menu-driven, and very user-friendly. Users had access to an extensive array of OPEN-APPLE keyboard commands for operational shortcuts. All lists were accessed from pop-down menus and selections were entered by positioning the cursor and pressing RETURN. Lists were also user-modifiable. Actual typing was limited to student-specific data such as name, and present educational levels

History
In 1968, I was director of education at the Laurelton State School in Laurelton, Pennsylvania. During that year, I began to coordinate the efforts of a multi-disciplinary group in the development of the Sequential Training and Evaluation Profile (STEP). Although this program was not computerized, the objectives were similar in style and content to eventual PennStar objectives. These objectives were used to develop curricula for students in a wide range of developmental ages. In 1973, I became a supervisor of special education with the Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit 16 in Lewisburg. Pa. My duties included the development and implementation of the Child-Based Information System (CBIS). CBIS used a mainframe computer to store PennStar-style objectives which users could call up with optical scan forms to create IEPs (individual education programs). In early 1984, in my capacity as special education adviser in the Pennsylvania Department of Education, I began putting together a team for the development of a computerized IEP and curriculum system which would meet state and federal requirements.

The first PennStar Team agreed unanimously that the foundation of the curriculum base should be Intermediate Unit 16's CBIS which, in turn, had its roots in Laurelton's STEP. Therefore, the development of the PennStar Master Curriculum began with 16 years of field testing.

Curriculum Reviewers
The developing and refining of the PennStar Master Curriculum was done in three stages over a period of 18 months. The workers during the first stage were 18 special education consultants in the various projects of the Pennsylvania Special Education Resource System. After their initial work was completed, in the second stage, the various Goal Areas were farmed out to a total of 72 Pennsylvania teachers for review and editing. The third and final stage of the process was carried out by 21 professors in Pennsylvania universities who gave it the final polish.

THE NUMBERS LISTED below each reviewer's name represent areas covered during the review process. The first two digits indicate the Subject Area and the last two digits show the Goal Area within that Subject Area The designated employer and Goal Area numbers were current at the time the curriculum review was done. In some cases, this information changed between the time the review was done and the printing of the PennStar IEP Manager manual in 1986. There is no attempt to make them current as of this date.

First Level Review
was carried out by persons employed by the various projects of the Special Education Resource System who worked on the PennStar System as part of their assigned duties. The three Regional Resource Centers were located at Gibsonia (near Pittsburgh), Harrisburg, and King of Prussia (near Philadelphia).

Jill Lichty, Central Special Education Regional Resource Center
01.01, 01.02, 01.03, 01.04, 01.05, 01.06, 01.07

Lola Kearns, Arts in Special Education
02.01, 02.02, 02.03, 02.04, 02.05, 13.02, 13.03, 13.04

Susan Shandelmier, Eastern Special Education Regional Resource Center
03.01, 03.02, 03.03, 03.04, 03.05

Marijke Brown, Western Special Education Regional Resource Center
04.01, 04.02, 04.03

Consultants, Technical Assistance for Sensory Impaired Programs
05.01, 05.02, 05.03, 05.04, 05.05, 05.06, 05.07, 05.08, 05.09, 05.10

Jeannie Saylor, Technical Assistance for Sensory Impaired Programs
06.01, 06.02, 06.03, 06.04, 06.05, 06.06, 06.07

Marianne Price, Eastern Special Education Regional Resource Center
07.01, 07.02, 07.03, 07.04, 07.05

Mary D'Ippolito, Eastern Special Education Regional Resource Center
08.01, 08.02, 08.03, 08.04, 08.05, 08.06, 08.07

Bruce Bishoff, Western Special Education Regional Resource Center
09.01, 09.02, 09.03, 09.04

Marcia Klafter, Eastern Special Education Regional Resource Center
10.01, 10.02, 10.03, 10.04, 10.05, 10.06

Clifford Pogue, Central Special Education Regional Resource Center
11.01, 11.02, 11.03, 11.04

Coleen Verunni, Eastern Special Education Regional Resource Center
12.01, 12.02, 14.01, 14.02

Ruth Kuchinsky, Arts in Special Education
13.01

Phillip Juska, Eastern Special Education Regional Resource Center
15.01, 15.02, 15.03, 15.04

Evelyn Duncan, Central Special Education Regional Resource Center
15.05, 15.06, 15.07, 15.08

Lynda Cook, Right-to-Education Technical Assistance Group
16.01, 16.03, 16.07, 16.08, 16.09, 16.10

Richard Rudisill, Central Special Education Regional Resource Center
16.02, 16.04, 16.05, 16.06

Second Level Review
was carried out by persons employed by school districts and intermediate units who worked on the PennStar System on their own time under contract as consultants. As a general rule, two reviewers were assigned to each Goal Area. These contracts were funded through the Right-to-Education Technical Assistance Group.

Ellen M. Kissinger, Berks County Intermediate Unit 14
01.01, 01.02, 01.03, 01.04, 01.05, 01.06

Judy Duffy, Northeastern Educational Intermediate Unit 19
01.01, 01.02, 01.03, 01.04, 01.05, 01.06

Gail McGregor, Philadelphia School District
01.07, 02.01, 02.03

Carol Weezorak, Capital Area Intermediate Unit 15
01.07, 02.01, 02.02, 02.03

Sharon Farley, Capital Area Intermediate Unit 15
02.02

Bonnie Beers, Northeastern Educational Intermediate Unit 19
02.04, 02.05, 07.01, 07.02, 08.04, 08.07

Diane Miller Keystone Central School District
02.04, 02.05, 07.01, 07.07

Marcia Christy, Capital Area Intermediate Unit 15
03.01

Jacqueline M. Territo, Pittsburgh School District
03.01, 03.04, 03.05

Deborah Adamczyk, Allegheny Intermediate Unit 3
03.02, 03.03, 05.06, 05.07

Kathy Yocklovich, Bucks County Intermediate Unit 22
03.02, 03.03, 03.04, 03.05, 05.01, 05.05, 05.08, 05.10

Gloria Luzecki, Delaware County Intermediate Unit 25
04.01, 04.02, 04.03

Sally, Sentner, Berks County Intermediate Unit 14
04.01, 04.02, 04.03

Clara Paul, Capital Area Intermediate Unit 15
05.01, 05.04, 05.05, 05.06, 05.07, 05.08, 05.10

Lillian F. Wilson, Delaware County Intermediate Unit 25
05.03

Rita Sardoni, BLaST Intermediate Unit 17
05.03

Roz Garfinkel, Lincoln Intermediate Unit 12
05.03, 05.09

Joseph J. Curry, Capital Area Intermediate Unit 15
05.03, 05.04, 05.09

Patricia McGinly, Montgomery County Intermediate Unit 23
06.01, 06.02

Harold Hoff, Eastern Special Education Regional Resource Center
06.01, 06.02 06.03, 06.04, 06.05, 06.06, 06.07, 06.0806.09

Jeannie Saylor, Technical Assistance for Senory Impaired Programs
06.01, 06.02, 06.03, 06.04, 06.05, 06.06, 06.0

Patricia, M. Bowles, Berks County Intermediate Unit 14
06.01, 06.04

Tina Hertzog, Berks County Intermediate Unit 14
06.02, 06.05

James Newcomer, Bucks County Intermediate Unit 22
06.03

Shelly, Faust-Jones, Berks County Intermediate Unit 14
06.03

Susan J. Miller, Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13
06.04, 06.06 06.07

Paulette Fehi, Lincoln Intermediate Unit 12
06.05, 06.07

Carol Knuth, Allegheny Intermediate Unit 3
06.06

Jeanne I. Long Lock Haven School District
07.03, 07.04, 07.05

John A. Kiss, Berks Couuty Intermediate Unit 14
07.03

Carol S. Niznik, BLaST Intermediate Unit 17
07.04, 07.05, 10.01

Cynthia L. Dittman, Lancaster School District
08.01, 08.02, 08.04, 08.07

Marian G. Adams, North Hills School District
08.01, 08.03, 08.05, 08.06

Andrea Kirchenheiter, Parkland School District
08.02, 08.03

Susan Hughes, Northwest Tri-County Intermediate Unit S
08.05, 08.06

Janice Van Horn, Parkland School District
09.01, 09.02, 09.03, 09.04

Erin M. Webb, Berks County Intermediate Unit 14
09.01, 09.02, 09.03, 09.04

Neva S. Davis, Keystone Central School District
10.01, 10.02, 10.03, 10.04, 10.05, 10.06, 11.01, 11.02, 11.03, 11.04

Donna L. Burkhart, North Hills School District
10.01, 10.03, 10.04, 10.05, 10.06

Patricia Seybert, North Hills School District
11.01, 11.02, 11.03, 11.04

Pam McAraw, Northwest Tri-County Intermediate Unit 5
12.01, 12.02

Barbara Knapp-Minick, Allegheny Intermediate Unit 3
12.01, 12.02, 14.02

Charles Jaynes, Warren County School District
13.01

John T. Devorick, Jr., Capital Area Intermediate Unit 15
13.01

Anna Maria Ginocchi Enders, Cumberland Valley School District
13.02

Susan Rodriguez, Overbrook School
13.02

Joe McCarthy, Consultant
13.03, 13.04

Barbara Pearson, Consultant
13.04

James Scanlon, Delaware County Intermediate Unit 25
14.01, 14.02

Larry Conaway, Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit 16
14.01

Elsie G.S. Bell, Berks Area Vocational-Technical School
15.01, 15.02, 15.03, 15.04, 15.05, 15.06, 15.07, 15.08

Joanne M. Cashman, Shikellamy School District
15.01, 15.02, 15.03, 15.04, 15.05, 15.06, 15.07, 15.08

John Flohr, Central Intermediate Unit 10
15.09

Rodney Zerr, Berks County Intermediate Unit 14
15.09

Larry J. Swisher, ARIN 1U 28
16.01, 16.02, 16.03, 16.04, 16.05, 16.16

Neil R. Kinsey, Lancaster School District
16.01, 16.02, 16.03

Donald, Cekus, Beattie Area Vocational-Technical School
16.04, 16.05

David L. Delo, Beattie Area Vocational-Technical School
16.06

Donna Bish, Clarion Manor Intermediate Unit 6
16.06, 16.07, 16.08, 16.09

Dean Russell, Clarion County AVTS
16.06, 16.07, 16.08, 16.09

Clarence Lamanna, Northeastern Educational Intermediate Unit 19
16.06, 16.10, 16.12, 16.15, 16.16

Scott Kalamar, Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School
16.10, 16.11

Chris Mihalakis, Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School
16.10, 16.11

Ann Ferencin, Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School
16.10, 16.11

Ken Sheaffer, Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School
16.10, 16.11

Dorothy Shemick, Centre County Area Vocational-Technical School
16.12

Barbara R. Bishop, Beattie Area Vocational-Technical School
16.10

Mimi S. Hoffman, Beattie Area Vocational-Technical School
16.13, 16.14

Suzanne Miller, Teachers Substitute Service
16.15

E.A. Niehaus, Beattie Area Vocational-Technical School
16.16

Mike Hampsey, Crawford County Area Vocational-Technical School
6.17, 16.18

Worth Hammond, Crawford County Area Vocational-Technical School
16.17, 16.18

Third Level Review
was carried out by persons employed by Pennsylvania universities who worked on the PennStar System on their own time under contract as consultants. One third level reviewer was assigned to each Goal Area. These contracts were funded through the Great Lakes Area Regional Resource Center, Columbus, OH.

John M. McLaughlin, Ed.D., Bloomsburg University
01.01, 01.02, 01.03, 01.04, 01.05, 01.06, 01.07

Sara Willoughby-Herb, Ph.D., Shippensburg University
02.01, 02.02, 02.03, 02.04, 02.05

Colleen J. Marks, Ed.D., Bloomsburg University
03.01, 03.02, 03.03, 03.04 03.05

Phillip Strain, Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh
04.01, 04.02, 04.03

Frederick F. Weiner, Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University
05.01, 05.04, 05.05, 05.06, 05.07, 05.08, 05.10

Richard G. Stoker, Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University
05.02, 05.03, 05.09

Susan M. Kershman, Ph.D., Pennsylvania College of Optometry
06.01, 06.02, 06.03, 06.04, 06.05, 06.06, 06.07, 06.08

Mary W. Moore, Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh
06.06, 06.08, 07.01

Howard Freeman, Ed.D., West Chester University
07.01, 07.02, 07.03, 07.04, 07.05

Naomi Zigmond, Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh
08.01, 08.02, 08.03, 08.04, 08.05, 08.06, 08.07

Doris T. Gow, Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh
09.01, 09.02, 09.03, 09.04, 09.05, 09.06, 09.07, 09.08

Catherine Cornbleth, Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh
10.01, 10.02, 10.03, 10.04, 10.05, 10.06

Willard W. Korth, Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh
11.01, 11.02, 11.03, 11.04

Tom Stich, Ed.D., Mansfield University
12.01, 12.02

Keith Thompson, Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University
13.01, 13.02

Robert Koslosky, Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University
13.03

Helen Manfull, Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University
13.04

Patricia Helgel-Tanner, Pennsylvania Stale University
13.05

Patrick J. Schloss, Ph.D., Pennsylvania State university
14.01, 14.02

Terrence Piper, Ph.D., Temple University
13.01, 15.02, 15.03, 15.04, 15.05, 15.06, 15.07, 15.0S

Eleanor Bicanich, Indiana University of Pennsylvania Vocational Center
16.01, 16.02, 16.03, 16.04, 16.05, 16.06, 16.07, 16.08, 16.09, 16.10, 16.11

G. Edwin Lint, M.A., Editor
Special Education Adviser and PennStar Team Leader
Pennsylvania Department of Education

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