About SECAC-PG

The Maryland State Code of Law (COMAR), Section 13a.05.02.13.I states that each school system in the State of Maryland will have a Special Education Citizens Advisory Committee (SECAC). Our organization serves as this advisory committee for the Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) Department of Special Education.
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To learn about SECACs in Maryland, please see the Maryland State Department of Education Technical Assistance Bulletin 11: Special Education Advisory Committees.

2026-7 Board Officer Elections

CANDIDATES

Chair Candidate – Theresa Smith
Vice Chair Candidates – Tanisha Wooten, Peggy Higgens
Secretary Candidate – Sierra Vallin
Treasurer Candidate – Pamela Talley
Co-Secretary Candidate – [vacant]

You can view descriptions of each position in our bylaws, here.

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Questions to Candidates

To ensure fairness and consistency, members of the nominating committee have asked candidates to answer three standardized questions.

SECAC-PG is focused on increasing outreach, family engagement, and overall growth. What ideas or strategies would you bring to strengthen awareness, participation, and community involvement?
What goals or objectives would you want SECAC-PG to accomplish during your term, and how would you help contribute to those outcomes? At the end of the school year, what accomplishments or measurable successes would you hope to see reflected in the annual end-of-year report?
Board members are expected to attend meetings, participate in activities outside of meetings, and contribute throughout the year. Do you have the availability and capacity to actively fulfill these responsibilities? Please describe any limitations or scheduling considerations.

Candidate Interviews

Candidates were given the chance to respond to the above three questions live for our members. You can watch this video here.

Candidates who were unable to attend the live meeting were given the opportunity to comment via text or additional recording. You can view their answers below:

My name is Sierra Vallin, and I am a candidate for the Secretary role on the SECAC-PG Board. I am a PGCPS parent of two children with disabilities, so my interest in SECAC is personal, practical, and rooted in lived experience.

I am interested in serving as secretary because I want to help SECAC maintain records that are accurate, transparent, and useful, while protecting student privacy and identifying broader patterns that can inform recommendations to PGCPS.

Professionally, I have nearly two decades of experience in higher education administration, including student support and advocacy, academic policy, operations, communications, and strategic planning. My formal educational background is in community and clinical psychology. I am also a member of the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates (COPAA) and participate in its state and local advocacy community, which gives me access to resources, training, and broader examples of how families and advisory bodies approach special education accountability and parent engagement.

Question 1: SECAC-PG is focused on increasing outreach, family engagement, and overall growth. What ideas or strategies would you bring to strengthen awareness, participation, and community involvement?

I believe SECAC-PG should always strive to be more visible and more useful to families.

Many families do not know what SECAC is or why it matters until they are already in crisis. I would support plain-language materials that explain what SECAC does, who can participate, how families can raise concerns, and how those concerns are used.

I would also like to see stronger school-based and community-based outreach. That could include shareable flyers, school newsletters, PTAs, parent liaisons, special education chairs, libraries, recreation programs, disability organizations, and community partners who already serve families of children with disabilities.

Outreach should also be intentional about reaching families who may not already be connected, including multilingual families, families of younger children, transition-age students, and families navigating issues such as service implementation, identification, transportation, discipline, and data-informed decision-making by IEP teams.

Finally, outreach has to include follow-up. Families are more likely to stay involved when they see that their participation leads somewhere. I would support issue-specific listening opportunities and a simple process for tracking recurring concerns so SECAC can identify themes and use family input to shape recommendations while protecting student identities and privacy.

Question 2: What goals or objectives would you want SECAC-PG to accomplish during your term, and how would you help contribute to those outcomes? At the end of the school year, what accomplishments or measurable successes would you hope to see reflected in the annual end-of-year report?

If selected as SECAC Secretary, I would want SECAC-PG to strengthen three areas: documentation, pattern tracking, and advisory impact.

At the end of the school year, I would hope the annual report builds on prior SECAC reporting by showing not only what families raised and what recommendations were made, but also what follow-up occurred, what issues still require continued attention, and whether district responses to prior SECAC recommendations have led to meaningful progress.

I think SECAC has an opportunity to use family input as data, while protecting student and family privacy. Individual family experiences matter on their own, but they can also help identify broader patterns and system-level blind spots. Data should not only tell us whether a process occurred. It should help us understand whether the process was meaningful and whether it improved outcomes for students and families.

Measurable successes could include increased participation, increased voting membership, consistent agendas and minutes, timely meeting recaps, documented action items, and a clearer process for tracking family concerns by theme.

My contribution would be helping turn member input into organized records, clear summaries, and meaningful follow-up. I believe the Secretary role is more than paperwork. Strong records help preserve family voice, support accountability, and help SECAC move from discussion to action.

Question 3: Board members are expected to attend meetings, participate in activities outside of meetings, and contribute throughout the year. Do you have the availability and capacity to actively fulfill these responsibilities? Please describe any limitations or scheduling considerations.

Yes, I have the capacity to actively contribute to the role. Like many parents, I balance work, family responsibilities, and advocacy, so clear expectations and advance planning are important. But I would not be running if I did not believe I could contribute meaningfully.

Evening virtual meetings are generally workable for me, and I can contribute outside of meetings through drafting, reviewing documents, organizing information, supporting communications, tracking action items, and helping prepare clear summaries or reports.

My main scheduling consideration is that I may not always be available for last-minute requests. With reasonable notice and organized planning, I can be a consistent and active contributor.

My goal as Secretary would be to help SECAC-PG become a committee families can trust to listen carefully, document accurately, communicate clearly, and carry concerns forward in a meaningful way.

Thank you for considering my candidacy.

Respectfully,

Sierra Vallin

Voting is now open!

Ballots have been distributed via e-mail to voting members, and voting will remain open through June 6, 2026.

Voting will open on May 29, 2026 and conclude on June 5, 2026.

Vote Now!

VOTING ELIGIBILITY REMINDER

To ensure a fair and accurate election process, voting eligibility must be confirmed before votes are counted.

Only eligible SECAC-PG voting members may participate in board elections. Membership eligibility will be reviewed and verified prior to certification of election results.

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PLEASE NOTE

Voting eligibility will be confirmed before votes are counted toward any candidate.
Individuals must meet SECAC-PG membership requirements outlined in the bylaws and election procedures.
Votes submitted by individuals who do not meet eligibility requirements may not be included in final certified results.
Election results remain preliminary until eligibility review is complete.

We encourage all members to participate in this important process and support SECAC-PG's continued growth and advocacy efforts.

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Next Steps

Nominating Committee Meeting #4

Date TBD

This will be a publicly noticed working meeting of the Nominating Committee.

During this meeting the committee will:

Review and verify voting eligibility requirements
Confirm eligible voting members
Review election results
Certify incoming board members

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June 2026

The newly selected SECAC-PG board members will be formally presented on our SECAC-PG website.

Our Mission and Purpose

To enable the community to participate in the educational process and to make that process more knowledgeable about and responsive to the unique and multifaceted needs of students with disabilities.
To ensure that parents are actively and meaningfully involved in the educational process.
To advise the Board of Education, Superintendent, Director of Special Education, and the community at large of the unmet needs of students with disabilities.
To facilitate effective communication and collaboration between Prince George’s County Public School System and students, families, advocates and other interested community members.
Increasing awareness to foster respect and encourage acceptance of person with disabilities both within the school community and the community at large.
To strive to fulfill the intent and spirit of the laws that defines and protects the rights of an individual with disabilities.
To receive requests from the Director of Special Education, Superintendent, the Board of Education and the community at large.
To research inquiries or concerns and make recommendations or other appropriate responses to the Director of Special Education, Superintendent, Board of Education and/or the community in a timely manner.
To provide a forum for countywide citizen input on special education programs, related services and relevant issues.

Our By-Laws

View our current By-Laws

Click here to download a copy of our by-laws.
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View the latest Draft By-Laws

SY 2025-26 By-Law Updates

The Maryland State Code of Law (COMAR), Section 13a.05.02.13.I states that each school system in the State of Maryland will have a Special Education Citizens Advisory Committee (SECAC). Our organization serves as this advisory committee for the Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) Department of Special Education.
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To learn about SECACs in Maryland, please see the Maryland State Department of Education Technical Assistance Bulletin 11: Special Education Advisory Committees.