District Newsletter

It's nice to meet you!

Hello! I am incredibly excited to (digitally) meet you all and am looking forward to the upcoming school year. This year is my 11th first day of school as an educator, and each one is just as exciting as the last. 

Our team has been hard at work this August, preparing to welcome our staff back to the building on August 24th to kick off the new school year. We are revisiting our foundations and strengthening our practices to support your students when they arrive back on campus on September 1.

A Few More Hellos…

We have a few additional administrative updates as we move into the 2026–27 school year, including some new faces following a few bittersweet goodbyes. 

Olympic Academy

Amy Dunnagan has moved into the program director role and will oversee our Olympic Academy teams working in conjunction with director Sheila Ammons, a new addition to our team who brings a wealth of knowledge and experience. These two amazing leaders will be your go-to Olympic Academy connections as we wish Miranda Leeper and Paige Ollikainen the best of luck in their new roles.

Summit Academy

Magdalena Casimiro will continue to act as the program director for Summit Academy. She is joined this year by Nadia Cherraj, who has made the transition from Olympic Academy teacher to Summit Academy director of Instructional Support. We are incredibly excited for the expertise Nadia will bring to her new role.

Pathfinder Services

Dustin Dixon has jumped in as the new director of Pathfinder Services, shifting from his prior work with this team as a BCBA. Dustin brings incredible knowledge and experience to the Pathfinder team and has connected with many of you already. This August has been a fantastic opportunity to pass along the torch as I move into my new role as the senior director of Expedition.

The rest of our team remains the same hard-working and dedicated group of teachers, teacher associates, and RBTs that have been working with you over the last year. We are excited for these next steps and look forward to continuing to serve students together. 

Enrollment update

Our Expedition Behavioral Education program continues to serve districts across the region, including partnerships with 25 local districts through Olympic Academy, Summit Academy, and our outreach program, Pathfinder Services. 

As we move into the new school year, we will continue to review referrals for our site-based programs; referrals are reviewed and considered based on student grade bands and openings in those program classrooms. At this time, both Summit Academy and Olympic Academy are actively accepting referrals.

Pathfinder Services is accepting requests and is able to provide de-escalation training and professional development, and will continue to host the BCBA Community of Practice, National Voices. Local Impact. events, and the Special Education Teacher’s Guild. 

We are looking forward to continuing to work with all of the amazing educators in our region.

Celebrations

Extended School Year (ESY) just wrapped up its second year for qualified Summit Academy students, and the team did an excellent job working with students. We even got to wish one of our aging-out students a heartfelt goodbye. Tears were shed, cupcakes were eaten, and our wonderful student was celebrated on their final day of school — ever! 

Professional development opportunities

National Voices. Local Impact.

Join us on August 27 for another National Voices. Local Impact. event with Dr. Ross Greene. Huge shout-out to Chehalis School District for partnering with us to host this event!

Interested in partnering with us for another National Voices. Local Impact event? Reach out to Dustin Dixon as he and the Pathfinder Services team plan for the year. 

Pathfinder Services

Speaking of Pathfinder Services, should your team be interested in professional development, Safety Care de-escalation training, or something else, this team of incredible professionals can be of service!

In closing

We wish you a fabulous start to the school year — please reach out to our team if you have questions, curiosities, or just want to connect. We appreciate your partnership and look forward to a wonderful school year!