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All children, even those with disabilities or special needs, have the right to go to public schools. Disabilities can either be physical, mental, emotional, learning, or health related. For more on disabilities click this link Disabilities
Children with
disabilities or special needs have the right to receive needed educational
services. Special Education
means the child’s education will meet the unique needs of the child with
a disability or special needs. This
may mean adapting the content of what is taught to adjust to the
student’s ability, the methods used to teach, and the location. It may also include related services like speech and
audiological services, physical and occupational therapy.
These are just some of the related services. For more on what
makes Special Education an Appropriate Education click
here.
Services are provided
at no cost to the family. Schools
can only charge a child with a disability or special needs the fees that
would be charged if the child did not have disabilities or special needs.
I.e. locker fees or laboratory fees
These rights are part of a law
passed by Congress in 1975. Public
Law 101-476 is better known as IDEA, the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Improvement Act. This law was
reauthorized in 2004.
Click for more information on IDEA 2004 (Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004)
The part of IDEA that allows all children a public education at no cost to the family is called FAPE (Free and Appropriate Public Education). Services must be provided for qualifying students as early as age 3 and up to age 21. For more on FAPE, click here FAPE.
Students with disabilities or special needs also have the right to receive their education in the least restrictive environment (LRE). This means that they should be in classrooms with and studying the same materials as the children without disabilities as much as possible.
The Special Education process starts when the parents, guardian, or
school staff make a referral for an initial
evaluation. What services a student with special needs will
receive and where they will be received are determined at an Admissions
and Release Committee (ARC) Meeting
Who should be at this meeting?
o The student
o The parent or guardian
o The student’s general
education teacher
o The student’s special
education teacher
o Someone from the school
district that knows the
general education and special education systems
and can okay the way the school’s
resources are being used.
o Some one to interpret test
results and knows how the
results will effect the student in school
o
People that will be
providing services such as therapy,
counseling, care coordination …
o
If the child has been in an
early intervention program,
a person from that program should
come
o
Anyone you think will be
able to provide information needed
to make the best plan for the student’s education
o
You
may also have someone there to assist or support you.
The plan that is created at this meeting is an
Individual Education Program (IEP). Sometimes
the ARC meeting is called an IEP meeting.
The IEP will list the things the student is to work on, how they
will do this, where they will work, and goals to determine the effects of
the work. The plan should be
designed around Least Restrictive Environment (LRE).
Inclusion is another word heard
when talking about people with disabilities and special needs.
LRE helps to provide inclusion.
For more on the benefits of inclusion click here.
Inclusion
It is important that you keep records of your own.
Keep copies of letters that you send, the letters you get back,
reports, and IEPs.
Click
here for more on Record
Keeping
The Rehabilitation Act of
1973 (Public Law 93-112) is a civil rights law, which states that no
program, which receives federal funds, may exclude a person with
disabilities from participating solely by reason of his or her disability.
This includes the public education system.
The Act also sets standards to determine whether the education
provided to a student with disabilities is “appropriate”.
Section 504 of The Rehabilitation
Act, has a broader definition of “handicapped” or “disabled” than
does IDEA and qualifies students for special services when they do not
qualify under IDEA. To learn more about disabilities that qualify for
services under 504 see #12 in this link 504
covered disabilities.
Once a student with a disability leaves the public school system to attend a postsecondary school; they are no longer protected by IDEA, but they are still covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and ADA.
Post-secondary schools cannot discriminate on the basis of a disability.
A post-secondary
school is not required to provide FAPE, but they are required to
provide appropriate accommodations and support services to assure equal
educational opportunity for students with disabilities. The
terms of all reasonable accommodations and services are based upon
assessment of the impact of the student's disability on his or her
academic performance. Academic adjustments may include modification
to academic requirements and auxiliary aids and services.
Examples: reducing a course load, substituting one course for
another, providing supplemental note takers, recording devices, sign
language interpreters, extended time for test taking, adaptive software or
hardware for school computers. Postsecondary schools are not
required to waive, eliminate or fundamentally alter essential requirements,
it must consider whether there is a reasonable accommodation that would permit
the student to satisfy the requirement. For
example, although the school may be required to provide extended testing
time, it is not required to change the substantive content or format of the test, nor is the school required to lower or
effect substantial modifications to essential requirements.
Post-secondary
schools do not have to provide personal attendants, individually
prescribed devices, readers for personal use or study, or other devices or
services
If the
post-secondary school provides housing for students with no
The
student is responsible for notifying the school that they have a
Schools
are required to have procedures to request academic adjustments, it is up to the student
to know and follow these procedures. Many schools have staff whose purpose
is to assist students with
Points to remember
All children are entitled to a free
and appropriate public education, in the least restrictive environment,
participation in the general curriculum is emphasized.
Services provided to students
with disabilities, must be comparable to the serves received by other
students. A good question to
ask to help determine if a service is appropriate is:
If this child did not have a disability what would they be getting,
where would they get it?
Keep in mind
that when you ask for services, that they are for educational purposes
designed to address the individual needs of the student with a disability.
Don’t expect the services that do not relate to the child’s
education, but don’t accept any less.
Children with
qualifying disabilities are eligible to receive services from the public
schools as early as age 3, and up to age 21.
Disabilities can either be
physical, mental, emotional, learning or health related.
You have the
right to view your child’s school records.
It is important that you keep records of your own.
Keep copies of letters that you send, the letters you get back,
reports, and IEPs.
A
post-secondary school is not required to provide FAPE, but they are
required to provide appropriate academic adjustments.
It is up to the student to know and follow the procedures to
request adjustments, contact the admissions officer or counselor to
determine what office to contact regarding services.
Definitions
ADA The Americans with Disabilities Act gives civil rights protections to individuals with disabilities similar to those provided to individuals on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, age, and religion. It guarantees equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities in public accommodations, employment, transportation, State and local government services, and telecommunications.
Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) this portion of P.L.101-476 requires an education program be provided for all school-aged children, regardless of disability, without cost to families. The exact requirements of “appropriate” are not defined, but other references with in the law imply the most “normal” setting available.
Click here for more information on FAPE
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is also known as Public Law 101-476 (P.L. 101-476). IDEA is a federal law passed in 1975,
Click for more information on IDEA 2004 (Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004)
Individual
Education Program (IEP) is the
written educational plan designed for the school-aged child with
disabilities, and is developed by the team of professionals (teachers,
therapists, etc.) along with the child’s parents.
The IEP team must include at least one general
education teacher of the child (if the child is, or may be, participating
in the general education environment).
The IEP describes how the child is presently doing, what the child’s
learning needs are, and what services the child will need and who will
provide them. The IEP is a
legal document, and is reviewed and updated yearly. Click here for more information on Guide
to IEP's
Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) is
an educational setting or program that provides the student with
disabilities the chance to work and learn to the best of their ability.
The student is provided with as much contact as possible with
children without disabilities, and at the same time the child’s learning
needs and physical requirements are being met.
Initial Evaluation
If
your child is having trouble in school, you may ask the school to evaluate
your child. The school may
even bring up the idea of an evaluation.
The evaluation is provided at no cost to you.
The school system must have your permission to do an evaluation or
to provide any special services. The
evaluation must be completed within a reasonable time after the request.
Evaluations must be done in the child’s native language.
They must be non-discriminatory and a trained evaluator must give
them. Since the results will
be used to determine if the child has a disability and what service are
needed the decision cannot be made based on only one procedure such as
only one test. While you may request one verbally, a written request maybe
the best route. A letter
avoids confusion and provides a record of your request.
It also gives you the opportunity to get your thoughts down where
you cannot forget them and you can review them or have others review them,
and make changes. It is a
good idea to keep a folder to hold copies of the letters you send.
Since school districts have their own guidelines for special
education, you may want to call the main office of the school to ask for a
copy of these guidelines. The
guidelines should tell you to whom you should send the letter.
If it doesn’t you can send it to the principal.
Send a copy to your child’s teacher to keep the aware of what is
going on. The letter
doesn’t have to be long or written in any particular manner, tell them
why you are writing, your concerns, what you would like to see done, and
any questions you may have. Be
sure to provide the child’s full name and the name of the main teacher
or current class placement. Give
your address and daytime phone number where you can be reached.
Remember to say thank you. If
you need help writing the letter contact one of the agencies listed below.
Click
here for more information
The
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 is a civil rights law, which
states, “no qualified handicapped individual; … shall, solely by
reason of the handicap, be excluded from the participation in, be denied
the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or
activity receiving federal financial assistance.”
It also requires that qualified students with disabilities be
educated with persons who are not handicapped to the maximum extent
appropriate.
Section 504
protects
any “individual with disabilities who “…(i) has a physical or mental
impairment which substantially limits one or more major life activities,
(ii) has a record of such an impairment, or (iii) is regarded as having
such an impairment.” It
also protects individuals whose health related needs must be met during
the school day. Section 504 also requires placement in the least restrictive
environment, evaluation and procedural safeguards for students and
parents, including notice, hearing rights and access to student records.
Section 504 requires that services, provided to students with
disabilities, are comparable to the serves received by other students.
There are no guidelines for a written education plan, but it does
state development of an IEP is one way to meet the requirements of the
law. 504 Plan maybe the term
you would hear vs. IEP. You
can contact your school district’s Section 504 Compliance Office and ask
for the written policies and procedures for documenting the 504 plans.
For more information on education contact:
F.I.N.D. Project
Council on Mental Retardation
(502) 584-1239
www.findoflouisville.org
www.council-crc.org
Interdisciplinary
Human
Development Institute (IHDI)
(www.ihdi.uky.edu/859)
257-2769
Kentucky Department
of Education
Parent Resource Centers
(502) 564-4970
www.kde.state.ky.us
Kentucky Special
Parent
Involvement Network (KY-SPIN)
1-800-525-7746
www.kyspin.com
Office of Family
Resources and
Youth Services Centers (FRYSC)
502) 564-4986
cfc.state.ky.us/frysc
Advocacy
Partners = Parents Helping Parents
KY-SPIN
NICHCY
U.S. Department of Education
Office
of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
U.S.
Department of Education/Office of Civil Rights
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