| The BLaST IU 17 Executive Cabinet is comprised of the Executive Director, the three Division Directors and the Executive Assistant. As shown, they are: Mae Vanemon, Board Secretary and Executive Assistant; John Brenchley, Director of Management Services; Tom Shivetts, Executive Director; Bill Martens, Assistant Executive Director and Mary Beth Bianco, Director of Educational Planning. |
{Executive Cabinet} |
Thomas M. Shivetts, Executive Director
570-323-8561
We are pleased you are taking a few moments to familiarize yourself with our organization.
Along with the 28 other intermediate units covering the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, we were created by the state legislature in 1971 to serve as a regional service agency to the public and non-public schools of our locale.
BLaST Intermediate Unit 17 (serving Bradford, Lycoming, Sullivan and Tioga counties) assists regional schools with their charge to educate special needs children, provide speech, hearing, and vision services as well as psychological services. Our training and consultant staff provides a valuable resource to districts in the areas of behavioral manangement, reading and literacy strategies, progress monitoring, brain development theory, and technology useage.....just to name a few. Additionally, we are fully engaged in assisting LEAs with their regular education curriculum and professional development needs. Our business management services assist districts with payroll, insurance and other purchasing needs all in an effort to utilize our consortium buying position to cut costs. Our regional technology leadership has lead to wide area network services being delivered for the first time to the Northern region of our service area - this effort will first benefit schools and children but will also soon be available to regional businesses at a much lower cost than they would have ever been able to afford individually.
In monthly meetings with superintendents, special education directors, curriculum directors and technology leaders from our districts; we constantly strive to serve as a resource and an intermediary between the districts and the Pennsylvania Department of Education. The Directors of our three Divisions: Student Services, Educational Planning, and Business Management Services, all serve on my executive cabinet and assist with total organizational direction as well as serve in valuable state-wide leadership positions in their respective fields. For the first time, this state-wide involvement by IU 17 leadership is providing a voice for our region's educational needs in Harrisburg.
Please feel free to continue to browse the services described on this site. If any of our individual staff members can help you find the answer you are looking for - please feel free to contact them.
