I can't believe this information is so hard to find! I think the teachers are prevented from referring to any doctor and that's why I'm not getting any help there. I can understand that. But it seems the district would have some kind of information for people trying to navigate the system. If they do, I can't find it though.
I have a 13 year old son with moderate Autism and we have lived in Portland Oregon all of his life. I can tell you that the early intervention programs (preschool age) here in Portland are great! However, due to budgets and skill levels we have found getting the propper care for our son in school has been a fight through and through. If you move to Porland there are options of other school disticts for instance, Gresham /Barlow District, David Douglas district, Clackamas etc. All of these districts are within a small are around Portland.
We have been through Portland and David Douglas, both were not exactly set up to help in the best way.
So far our options have been to either have our son in a "life skills center" that is for severely challenged children that need to learn simple life skills, or there is a mainstream program where the kids get minimal help (depending on the budget) with aids as the children attend regular classes. My son is in the latter.
I would recommend getting a hold of Multnomah County Disability Services and sign up with a caseworker who will help you advocate the best possible care for your child. They can assist in the IEP meetings and enforce your requests.
I wish you all the luck, it is a hard road, but if you stay active and proactive, you can get the help your child deserves.
Don't be afraid to be the squeaky wheel!
Good Luck
Read more: http://www.city-data.com/forum/portland/384411-special-education-autism-portland.html#ixzz0piqFc0oh
What more information do you need?
Step 1. Child is identified as possibly needing special education and related services.
"Child Find." The state must identify, locate, and evaluate all children with disabilities in the state who need special education and related services. To do so, states conduct "Child Find" activities. A child may be identified by "Child Find," and parents may be asked if the "Child Find" system can evaluate their child. Parents can also call the "Child Find" system and ask that their child be evaluated. Or "
Referral or request for evaluation. A school professional may ask that a child be evaluated to see if he or she has a disability. Parents may also contact the child's teacher or other school professional to ask that their child be evaluated. This request may be verbal or in writing. Parental consent is needed before the child may be evaluated. Evaluation needs to be completed within a reasonable time after the parent gives consent.
2 Step 2. Child is evaluated.
The evaluation must assess the child in all areas related to the child's suspected disability. The evaluation results will be used to decide the child's eligibility for special education and related services and to make decisions about an appropriate educational program for the child. If the parents disagree with the evaluation, they have the right to take their child for an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE). They can ask that the school system pay for this IEE.
3 Step 3. Eligibility is decided.
A group of qualified professionals and the parents look at the child's evaluation results. Together, they decide if the child is a "child with a disability," as defined by IDEA. Parents may ask for a hearing to challenge the eligibility decision.
4 Step 4. Child is found eligible for services.
If the child is found to be a "child with a disability," as defined by IDEA, he or she is eligible for special education and related services. Within 30 calendar days after a child is determined eligible, the IEP team must meet to write an IEP for the child.
5Step 5. IEP meeting is scheduled.
The school system schedules and conducts the IEP meeting. School staff must:
* contact the participants, including the parents;
* notify parents early enough to make sure they have an opportunity to attend;
* schedule the meeting at a time and place agreeable to parents and the school;
* tell the parents the purpose, time, and location of the meeting;
* tell the parents who will be attending; and
* tell the parents that they may invite people to the meeting who have knowledge or special expertise about the child.
6 Step 6. IEP meeting is held and the IEP is written.
The IEP team gathers to talk about the child's needs and write the student's IEP. Parents and the student (when appropriate) are part of the team. If the child's placement is decided by a different group, the parents must be part of that group as well.
Before the school system may provide special education and related services to the child for the first time, the parents must give consent. The child begins to receive services as soon as possible after the meeting.
If the parents do not agree with the IEP and placement, they may discuss their concerns with other members of the IEP team and try to work out an agreement. If they still disagree, parents can ask for mediation, or the school may offer mediation. Parents may file a complaint with the state education agency and may request a due process hearing, at which time mediation must be available.
7 Step 7. Services are provided.
The school makes sure that the child's IEP is being carried out as it was written. Parents are given a copy of the IEP. Each of the child's teachers and service providers has access to the IEP and knows his or her specific responsibilities for carrying out the IEP. This includes the accommodations, modifications, and supports that must be provided to the child, in keeping with the IEP.
8 Step 8. Progress is measured and reported to parents.
The child's progress toward the annual goals is measured, as stated in the IEP. His or her parents are regularly informed of their child's progress and whether that progress is enough for the child to achieve the goals by the end of the year. These progress reports must be given to parents at least as often as parents are informed of their nondisabled children's progress.
9 Step 9. IEP is reviewed.
The child's IEP is reviewed by the IEP team at least once a year, or more often if the parents or school ask for a review. If necessary, the IEP is revised. Parents, as team members, must be invited to attend these meetings. Parents can make suggestions for changes, can agree or disagree with the IEP goals, and agree or disagree with the placement.
If parents do not agree with the IEP and placement, they may discuss their concerns with other members of the IEP team and try to work out an agreement. There are several options, including additional testing, an independent evaluation, or asking for mediation (if available) or a due process hearing. They may also file a complaint with the state education agency.
10 Step 10. Child is reevaluated.
At least every three years the child must be reevaluated. This evaluation is often called a "triennial." Its purpose is to find out if the child continues to be a "child with a disability," as defined by IDEA, and what the child's educational needs are. However, the child must be reevaluated more often if conditions warrant or if the child's parent or teacher asks for a new evaluation.
5. Contents of the IEP
By law, the IEP must include certain information about the child and the educational program designed to meet his or her unique needs. In a nutshell, this information is:
* Current performance. The IEP must state how the child is currently doing in school (known as present levels of educational performance). This information usually comes from the evaluation results such as classroom tests and assignments, individual tests given to decide eligibility for services or during reevaluation, and observations made by parents, teachers, related service providers, and other school staff. The statement about "current performance" includes how the child's disability affects his or her involvement and progress in the general curriculum.
* Participation in state and district-wide tests. Most states and districts give achievement tests to children in certain grades or age groups. The IEP must state what modifications in the administration of these tests the child will need. If a test is not appropriate for the child, the IEP must state why the test is not appropriate and how the child will be tested instead.
6. Additional State and School-System Content
States and school systems have a great deal of flexibility about the information they require in an IEP. Some states and school systems have chosen to include in the IEP additional information to document their compliance with other state and federal requirements. (Federal law requires that school districts maintain documentation to demonstrate their compliance with federal requirements.) Generally speaking, extra elements in IEPs may be included to document that the state or school district has met certain aspects of federal or state law, such as:
* holding the meeting to write, review and, if necessary, revise a child's IEP in a timely manner;
* providing parents with a copy of the procedural safeguards they have under the law;
* placing the child in the least restrictive environment; and
* obtaining the parents' consent.
Another important member of the IEP team is the individual who can interpret what the child's evaluation results mean in terms of designing appropriate instruction. The evaluation results are very useful in determining how the child is currently doing in school and what areas of need the child has. This IEP team member must be able to talk about the instructional implications of the child's evaluation results, which will help the team plan appropriate instruction to address the child's needs.
The IEP team may also include additional individuals with knowledge or special expertise about the child. The parent or the school system can invite these individuals to participate on the team. Parents, for example, may invite an advocate who knows the child, a professional with special expertise about the child and his or her disability, or others (such as a vocational educator who has been working with the child) who can talk about the child's strengths and/or needs. The school system may invite one or more individuals who can offer special expertise or knowledge about the child, such as a paraprofessional or related services professional. Because an important part of developing an IEP is considering a child's need for related services (see the list of related services in the box on the previous page), related service professionals are often involved as IEP team members or participants. They share their special expertise about the child's needs and how their own professional services can address those needs. Depending on the child's individual needs, some related service professionals attending the IEP meeting or otherwise helping to develop the IEP might include occupational or physical therapists, adaptive physical education providers, psychologists, or speech-language pathologists.
When an IEP is being developed for a student of transition age, representatives from transition service agencies can be important participants. (See the box below for more information about transition.) Whenever a purpose of meeting is to consider needed transition services, the school must invite a representative of any other agency that is likely to be responsible for providing or paying for transition services. This individual can help the team plan any transition services the student needs. He or she can also commit the resources of the agency to pay for or provide needed transition services. If he or she does not attend the meeting, then the school must take alternative steps to obtain the agency's participation in the planning of the student's transition services.
8. Writing the IEP
To help decide what special education and related services the student needs, generally the IEP team will begin by looking at the child's evaluation results, such as classroom tests, individual tests given to establish the student's eligibility, and observations by teachers, parents, paraprofessionals, related service providers, administrators, and others. This information will help the team describe the student's "present levels of educational performance" -in other words, how the student is currently doing in school. Knowing how the student is currently performing in school will help the team develop annual goals to address those areas where the student has an identified educational need.
The IEP team must also discuss specific information about the child. This includes:
* the child's strengths;
* the parents' ideas for enhancing their child's education;
* the results of recent evaluations or reevaluations; and
* how the child has done on state and district-wide tests.
In addition, the IEP team must consider the "special factors" described in the box below.
It is important that the discussion of what the child needs be framed around how to help the child:
* advance toward the annual goals;
* be involved in and progress in the general curriculum;
* participate in extracurricular and nonacademic activities; and
* be educated with and participate with other children with disabilities and nondisabled children.
Based on the above discussion, the IEP team will then write the child's IEP. This includes the services and supports the school will provide for the child. If the IEP team decides that a child needs a particular device or service (including an intervention, accommodation, or other program modification), the IEP team must write this information in the IEP. As an example, consider a child whose behavior interferes with learning. The IEP team would need to consider positive and effective ways to address that behavior. The team would discuss the positive behavioral interventions, strategies, and supports that the child needs in order to learn how to control or manage his or her behavior. If the team decides that the child needs a particular service (including an intervention, accommodation, or other program modification), they must include a statement to that effect in the child's IEP.
**********
Special Factors To Consider
Depending on the needs of the child, the IEP team needs to consider what the law calls special factors. These include:
* If the child’s behavior interferes with his or her learning or the learning of others, the IEP team will consider strategies and supports to address the child’s behavior.
* If the child has limited proficiency in English, the IEP team will consider the child’s language needs as these needs relate to his or her IEP.
* If the child is blind or visually impaired, the IEP team must provide for instruction in Braille or the use of Braille, unless it determines after an appropriate evaluation that the child does not need this instruction.
* If the child has communication needs, the IEP team must consider those needs.
* If the child is deaf or hard of hearing, the IEP team will consider his or her language and communication needs. This includes the child’s opportunities to communicate directly with classmates and school staff in his or her usual method of communication (for example, sign language).
* The IEP team must always consider the child’s need for assistive technology devices or services.
For more information about these special factors, see §300.346.
12. Reviewing and Revising the IEP
The IEP team must review the child's IEP at least once a year. One purpose of this review is to see whether the child is achieving his or her annual goals. The team must revise the child's individualized education program, if necessary, to address:
* the child's progress or lack of expected progress toward the annual goals and in the general curriculum;
* information gathered through any reevaluation of the child;
* information about the child that the parents share;
* information about the child that the school shares (for example, insights from the teacher based on his or her observation of the child or the child's classwork);
* the child's anticipated needs; or
* other matters.
Although the IDEA requires this IEP review at least once a year, in fact the team may review and revise the IEP more often. Either the parents or the school can ask to hold an IEP meeting to revise the child's IEP. For example, the child may not be making progress toward his or her IEP goals, and his or her teacher or parents may become concerned. On the other hand, the child may have met most or all of the goals in the IEP, and new ones need to be written. In either case, the IEP team would meet to revise the IEP.
**********
Look at Those Factors Again!
When the IEP team is meeting to conduct a review of the child’s IEP and, as necessary, to revise it, members must again consider all of the factors discussed on page 11. This includes:
* the child’s strengths,
* the parents’ ideas for enhancing their child’s education,
* the results of recent evaluations or reevaluations, and
* how the child has done on state and district-wide tests.
The IEP team must also consider the "special factors," as listed earlier.
13. What If Parents Don't Agree With the IEP?
There are times when parents may not agree with the school's recommendations about their child's education. Under the law, parents have the right to challenge decisions about their child's eligibility, evaluation, placement, and the services that the school provides to the child. If parents disagree with the school's actions-or refusal to take action-in these matters, they have the right to pursue a number of options. They may do the following:
* Try to reach an agreement. Parents can talk with school officials about their concerns and try to reach an agreement. Sometimes the agreement can be temporary. For example, the parents and school can agree to try a plan of instruction or a placement for a certain period of time and see how the student does.
* Ask for mediation. During mediation, the parents and school sit down with someone who is not involved in the disagreement and try to reach an agreement. The school may offer mediation, if it is available as an option for resolving disputes prior to due process.
* Ask for due process. During a due process hearing, the parents and school personnel appear before an impartial hearing officer and present their sides of the story. The hearing officer decides how to solve the problem. (Note: Mediation must be available at least at the time a due process hearing is requested.)
* File a complaint with the state education agency. To file a complaint, generally parents write directly to the SEA and say what part of IDEA they believe the school has violated. The agency must resolve the complaint within 60 calendar days. An extension of that time limit is permitted only if exceptional circumstances exist with respect to the complaint.
Western Regional Resource Center (WRRC)
1268 University of Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403-1268
(541) 346-5641; (541) 346-0367 (TTY)
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: interact.uoregon.edu/wrrc/wrrc.html
Serving: Alaska, American Samoa, California, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Federated states of Micronesia, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Republic of Palau, and Washington.
§ 300.349 Private school placements by public agencies.
(a) Developing IEPs. (1) Before a public agency places a child with a disability in, or refers a child to, a private school or facility, the agency shall initiate and conduct a meeting to develop an IEP for the child in accordance with §§ 300.346 and 300.347.
(2) The agency shall ensure that a representative of the private school or facility attends the meeting. If the representative cannot attend, the agency shall use other methods to ensure participation by the private school or facility, including individual or conference telephone calls.
(b) Reviewing and revising IEPs. (1) After a child with a disability enters a private school or facility, any meetings to review and revise the child's IEP may be initiated and conducted by the private school or facility at the discretion of the public agency.
(2) If the private school or facility initiates and conducts these meetings, the public agency shall ensure that the parents and an agency representative-
(i) Are involved in any decision about the child's IEP; and
(ii) Agree to any proposed changes in the IEP before those changes are implemented.
(c) Responsibility. Even if a private school or facility implements a child's IEP, responsibility for compliance with this part remains with the public agency and the SEA.
(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1412(a)(10)(B))
Stumble It!
Tweet This
Bookmark on Delicious
Share on Facebook
Share on MySpace