![People sitting around a table working together.]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1774639700/ulsterbocesorg/jejzrdyvmnolq64nygec/ScreenShot2026-03-27at32752PM.png","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1774639700/ulsterbocesorg/jejzrdyvmnolq64nygec/ScreenShot2026-03-27at32752PM.png","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1774639700/ulsterbocesorg/jejzrdyvmnolq64nygec/ScreenShot2026-03-27at32752PM.png","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_4/v1774639700/ulsterbocesorg/jejzrdyvmnolq64nygec/ScreenShot2026-03-27at32752PM.png","width":1200},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_5/v1774639700/ulsterbocesorg/jejzrdyvmnolq64nygec/ScreenShot2026-03-27at32752PM.png","width":1600},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_6/v1774639700/ulsterbocesorg/jejzrdyvmnolq64nygec/ScreenShot2026-03-27at32752PM.png","width":2200}])
Our Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning faculty and staff joined together for a powerful, hands-on Deep Dive professional learning experience grounded in our Leading for Deeper Learning principles and our shared North Star commitments.
Special Education: Centers for Innovative Teaching & Learning
Ulster BOCES provides programs for students ages five through twenty-one who are identified as needing specialized programs and/or supports according to their Individualized Education Program (IEP).
Special Education programs are offered at the Centers for Innovative Teaching & Learning at Ulster Park, Port Ewen, and Saugerties. They have been developed and offered to meet the specific needs of our students in order to assist them in realizing their potential to achieve both academically and socially.
The following programs are available in Special Class configurations of 12:1:1, 8:1:1, and 6:1:1. All classes are staffed by a full-time Special Education teacher and teaching assistant. (Additional supplementary 1:1 aides may be requested for individual students as per Committee on Special Education recommendations.)
Multiple programs are available.
Special Classes 12:1:1
GED Academic Preparatory Program
K-12 Maple Academy
Autism Program (APIE) Elementary
Autism Program (APIE) Middle and High School
Autism Program Alternatively Assessed Students (APIE/AA)
Life Skills Development Program (LSDP)
K-12 Oak Academy
Management Needs Program (MNP) Elementary
Management Needs Program (MNP) High School
K-12 Cedar Academy
ALPHA Middle and High School Programs
K-12 Birch Academy
Short and Long Term Therapeutic Program
Summer School
Extended School Year (ESY)
Related & Itinerant Services
Related Services (BOCES In-house Student)
Itinerant Services (District-based)
Other Services
Assistive Technology Services
Long-Term Therapeutic Programs
Community School Resources
Behavior Support Team
CITL at Port Ewen: A Pathway to Success
What Makes CITL at Anna Devine So Special?
CITL at Mount Marion Builds Community
What Makes CITL Special? Let Our Students Tell You
Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning Headline News
![Class of 2025]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1751043021/ulsterbocesorg/pszuqisi5vqrcsx9qtwg/Classof20251.png","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1751043021/ulsterbocesorg/pszuqisi5vqrcsx9qtwg/Classof20251.png","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1751043021/ulsterbocesorg/pszuqisi5vqrcsx9qtwg/Classof20251.png","width":660}])
Ulster County’s best and brightest students were recognized for their academic achievements and contributions to the school community during the annual Ulster County Scholastic Achievement Breakfast, held at Wiltwyck Golf Course in Kingston.
![A student poses behind a Mona Lisa poster in the Italy exhibit during the Ulster BOCES Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning’s Country Exploration Project-Based Learning experience on Friday, February 28.]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1742398168/ulsterbocesorg/i2y5kmnppyd3apqxau4j/Untitleddesign_2.png","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1742398168/ulsterbocesorg/i2y5kmnppyd3apqxau4j/Untitleddesign_2.png","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1742398168/ulsterbocesorg/i2y5kmnppyd3apqxau4j/Untitleddesign_2.png","width":660}])
Students at the Ulster BOCES Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning (CITL) at Mt. Marion recently celebrated the culmination of a month-long project-based learning (PBL) cycle during the school’s Country Exploration Celebration of Learning, held on February 21 and 28. This immersive experience transformed classrooms into different “countries,” allowing students to showcase their research and discoveries about diverse cultures, traditions, and landmarks without ever leaving their school.
What is Whole Brain, Whole Child at Ulster BOCES
CITL’s guiding framework — Whole Brain, Whole Child — emphasizes supporting every aspect of a student’s development: intellectually, emotionally, socially, and creatively. This approach honors the full identities of students by embracing their unique voices and strengths, rather than reducing them to labels or singular narratives. Get a glimpse of how our educators approach this work through their professional development experiences.
Contact
Jillaine Berardi, Ed.D.
Assistant Superintendent for Learning & Design - Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning Program
Michael Regan
Director of Special Education
Gwen Kramer-Gold
Assistant Director for Special Education
Tonya Griffiths
Principal
Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning at Mt. Marion
Christina Rutella
Principal
Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning at Port Ewen
Rachel Balaban
Assistant Principal
Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning at Port Ewen
David Goho
Assistant Principal
Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning at Port Ewen
Linda Rubin
Assistant Principal
Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning at Anna Devine
Shelbi Hamilton
Assistant Principal
Center for Innovative Teaching & Learning at Mt. Marion
Port Ewen
Route 9W, PO Box 1176
Port Ewen, NY 12466
Phone: 845.339.8707
Anna Devine
1372 Old Post Road
Ulster Park, NY 12487
Phone: 845.334.5915
Mt. Marion
744 Glasco Tpke,
Saugerties, NY 12477
Phone: 845.334.5930
How to Enroll
If you suspect your child has a disability or have been given a diagnosis by a medical practitioner, you can consider a referral to your school district’s Committee for Special Education (CSE). You may also want to meet with your child’s teacher and principal to share information about your child’s skills, abilities, and needs. After doing so, you may wish to state your concern and put the reasons for your suspicions into writing and provide copies of any prior evaluations and diagnoses to the chairperson of the CSE or the principal at your child’s school. You may discover that your child is eligible for support within the regular education program. This may be: short-term counseling through educationally related services, speech and language improvement services, curriculum and instructional modifications, or Academic Intervention Services.