Going to college?

By Jaclyn Kratzer from examiner.com

Is your student going to college next fall? This is a wonderful, yet scary transition process. In high school parents and students have an IEP team that steers them in the right direction, but that does not happen in college. The child, now young adult is an adult and with the exception of some select situations, parents can’t just call up the college to see if their son or daughter is doing well.

When you start the college search process (and you really should start out even if the young adult has a year of high school left!) there are resources that can help you. “The U.S. Department of Education announced the launch of an online "one-stop shop" aimed at guidance counselors and other advisers, such as staff or volunteers at community-based organizations, who assist students through the process of selecting and financing their higher education. The Financial Aid Toolkit, available at FinancialAidToolkit.ed.gov, consolidates financial aid resources and content into a searchable online database, making it easy for individuals to quickly access the information they need to support their students.” (Youth Resource Connections, Department of Labor, December, 2013).

In addition to the online resources that are available it is suggested that once the student picks the top three colleges that they call the Office of Disability Services (sometimes colleges call it the Office of Diversity) and talk to a counselor there. Ask the counselor what kind of documentation they need in order for the student to get the accommodations they need. You can never start this process too early.

Article HERE.

Ed. Dept. Finds Areas to Improve in Review of Common-Core Test Accessibility

Both of the consortia tasked with creating assessments for the Common Core State Standards have made progress but need to work on accommodations and accessibility, according to a recent technical review conducted by the U.S. Department of Education.

The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, or PARCC, should consider expanding the training it provides test-item writers in the area of accessibility and accommodations, the department review panel wrote in a recently-released memo. PARCC, which comprises 21 states and the District of Columbia, recently released the first edition of its accommodations and accessibility manual, which is meant to guide school teams in figuring out the type of test assistance that is appropriate for students with disabilities. Technical reviewers from the Education Department said they appreciated seeing the manual.

The Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, made up of 25 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands, was told that it should increase the involvement of special education experts in the test development process. The consortium was praised for incorporating universal design into the item writing process.

Read more of Christina Samuels' On Special Education article HERE.

Ed. Dept. Slashes S.C. Special Education Budget, Permanently

The U.S. Department of Education withheld $36 million in special education funds from South Carolina earlier this month, carrying out a penalty imposed on the state for cutting its own spending on special needs students three years ago.

In what may be a first-of-its-kind penalty, the feds used a provision in federal law that allows cutting a state's special education grant, permanently, if the state slashes its special education budget without the right justification. UPDATE: Kansas' state grant for special education was also cut this month, by about $2 million.

The $36 million cut represents about a 9 percent deduction in South Carolina's special education budget. It won't be felt this year, however.

State Superintendent Mick Zais convinced the South Carolina legislature to appropriate one-time funds in case of this scenario. So, "South Carolina students will not be harmed or denied services this school year because of the federal government's draconian cut," said Jay Ragley, South Carolina's director of the office of legislative affairs.

But the catch with the federal penalty: It goes on forever. In other words, South Carolina's budget will be cut by $36 million this year and every year going forward.

Read more of Nirvi Shah's On Special Education article HERE.

$24 Million in Grants Awarded to 22 States to Improve Training Systems to Help Children with Disabilities

The U.S. Department of Education announced today the award of $24 million in grants to 22 states to improve personnel training systems to help children with disabilities. States receiving grants are: Alabama, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin. The State Personnel Development Grants Program, authorized by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), provides funds to assist states in reforming and improving their systems for personnel preparation and professional development in early intervention, education and transition services in order to enhance results for children with disabilities. Read more at Ed.Gov HERE.

U.S. Education Secretary Warns that Automatic Budget Cuts Would Hurt Children and Families

Education Secretary Calls on Congress to Work with President Obama for a Long-Term Solution

JULY 25, 2012

Contact:  

 Press Office, (202) 401-1576, press@ed.gov 

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today detailed the impact of looming automatic budget cuts, saying they would force schools to lay off teachers and eliminate services for students while indiscriminately reducing programs that serve Americans of all ages.

“Essentially, we’re playing chicken with the lives of the American people – our schools, communities, small businesses, farms, public safety, infrastructure and national security,” Secretary Duncan told members of the Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee. “If we don’t work together to solve this problem, it further erodes what little faith remains in our elected leadership to put partisan politics aside and do the right thing for children and families.”

If Congress fails to create a long-term plan to reduce the budget deficit by the end of the year, across-the-board budget cuts known as sequestration will go into effect on almost every discretionary program, reducing funding for education, defense, public safety and all other federal agencies.

Duncan urged Congress to work with President Obama, who has submitted a plan that includes $4 trillion in deficit reductions and calls for targeted cuts in spending.

“We have tightened our belts in a responsible way,” Duncan said. “Most importantly, the President’s plan is a long-term fix. It will put an end to the see-saw budgeting that leaves state and local officials wondering if they can count on the federal government to be a partner with them on education and other vital programs.”

Read more of the U.S. Dept. of Ed press release HERE.

South Carolina Files Motion to Stall $36 Million Special Ed. Penalty

By Nirvi Shah from On Special Education

South Carolina is trying another route to keep from losing about $36 million in federal special education dollars.

The state has been fighting with the U.S. Department of Education for months over its special education budget. For several years, South Carolina cut spending on special education, something the state must get permission to do from the Education Department. The requirement protects students with disabilities from ups and downs in budget cycles that could otherwise affect student services. If states make cuts to special ed. spending that the feds don't agree is justified, they face losing an equal amount of federal special education money.

Read more HERE.

Senate Committee Reinforces Rules About District Special Ed. Spending

When the full U.S. Senate budget committee hashed out its proposal for the 2013 fiscal year on Thursday, the group preserved boosts to special education spending proposed by a Senate subcommittee earlier this week.

The committee also built in language about school district special education budgets that has been the source of angst and elation over the course of the last year: so-called "maintenance of effort" for districts. Maintenance of effort clauses exist to buffer students from losing services they need when government budgets fluctuate.

To recap, the U.S. Department of Education said in 2011 that districts could cut special education spending in a given year, whether or not the funding changes were covered by exceptions to built into federal disability education law, and that districts wouldn't have to resume spending at the previously higher level. They could use the lower rate of spending as their new benchmark for future special education budgeting.

The agency took that change in policy back earlier this year, however.

Read more of Nirvi Shah's On Special Education article HERE. 

U.S. Department of Education Issues Resource Document that Discourages Restraint and Seclusion

Today, the U.S. Department of Education issued a publication that outlines principles for educators, parents and other stakeholders to consider when developing or refining policies and procedures to support positive behavioral interventions and avoid the use of restraint and seclusion.

The goal of this resource document is to help ensure that schools are safe and healthy environments where all students can learn, develop and participate in instructional programs that promote high levels of academic achievement.

“As education leaders, our first responsibility must be to make sure that schools foster learning in a safe environment for all of our children and teachers,” U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said. “I believe this document is an important step toward this goal. I also want to salute leaders in Congress for their vigilance on this issue.”

The 15 principles that frame the document ultimately highlight how schoolwide behavioral interventions can significantly reduce or eliminate the use of restraint or seclusion. These guiding principles offer states, districts and other education leaders a framework for developing appropriate policies related to restraint and seclusion to ensure the safety of adults and children.

Read more of the U.S. Dept of Ed press release  HERE.

Feds Back Off Special Education Funding Plan

By Michelle Diament from disabilityscoop

After appearing to give school districts the green light last summer to decrease spending on special education, the U.S. Department of Education is making an about-face.

Under federal law, schools are required to maintain or increase their funding for special education from one year to the next. If they do not meet the standard known as “maintenance of effort” without obtaining an exemption from the Department of Education, districts can lose out on future federal funding.

Read more HERE.

Feds Share Largest Collection of Student Restraint, Seclusion Data

New federal data about how often public school students are restrained or secluded at school show that, in the majority of cases, these approaches are used to contain kids with disabilities, who make up just a sixth of all students.

Data from the Civil Rights Data Collection, gathered from the 2009-10 school year from about 85 percent of the nation's school districts, for the first time includes information about mechanical or physical restraints and seclusion. Although even the Government Accountability Office has investigated concerns about the use of these methods, there's never been data collected on this scale about the practices. (Read some of Education Week's coverage of other data collected by the U.S. Department of Education's office for civil rights here.)

Some analysis shared Tuesday by the federal Education Department shows that close to 40,000 students were physically restrained—or held by another person—that school year. Of those, 70 percent of the cases involved students with disabilities.

The department also found although black students make up 21 percent of students with disabilities, they represented 44 percent of the cases in which mechanical restraints—where students are controlled using some kind of a device—were involved. Some schools have used duct tape, handcuffs, helmets, anklets, and other devices, with the premise of keeping students from hurting themselves, teachers, or classmates.

This last practice is of particular concern to many groups who advocate on behalf of students with disabilities. The GAO report chronicled the deaths of some children restrained this way.

A new report from the National Disability Rights Network, whose "School is Not Supposed to Hurt" report several years ago shined a spotlight on the use of restraint and seclusion, shared stories this week of a middle school teacher duct taping a student to his wheelchair in Colorado and a 15-year-old student in Iowa strapped to a lunch table. Civil suits and federal complaints to the federal office for civil rights have, in some of these cases, found the schools violated state laws or students' civil rights, or both.

Read more of Nirvi Shah's On Special Education HERE.

Feds Pledge to Focus More on Quality of Special Education

Every year, the U.S. Department of Education spends lots of time and money visiting states to see how well they are complying with the requirements of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

Those reviews haven't take into account what or how much students with disabilities are actually learning. But they will soon, Education Department officials said today.

The department said it is revamping the way it rates states to better address the achievement gap between students with disabilities and their peers.

"For too long we've been a compliance-driven bureaucracy when it comes to educating students with disabilities," U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said in a statement. "We have to expect the very best from our students—and tell the truth about student performance—so that we can give all students the supports and services they need. The best way to do that is by focusing on results."

Education Department officials said they will suspend annual visits to 16 states for the 2012-13 school year for annual compliance reviews (They'll still do the reviews; just by phone and so forth) and instead spend the year working out a new review system that takes a results-driven approach to assessing how states are educating students with
disabilities.

Already, the expansion of the department's focus has begun, officials said. States visited last year had to choose an education outcome on which to focus. For example, Mississippi chose to focus on improving performance rates for students with disabilities in 3rd grade reading. Nebraska concentrated on developing a reentry program for students with disabilities who have dropped out of school.

Some special education advocacy groups complimented the department's move.

"This is a much-needed step I think," said Laura Kaloi, public policy director for the National Center for Learning Disabilities. Right now, states can meet federal special education compliance standards, even if "student proficiency is nowhere near where it should be for reading." (Find your state's ratings here.)

The Council for Exception Children said they too look forward to the department's revamped monitoring process.

"While there aren't many details about how they will proceed, we applaud the department's focus on outcomes for students with disabilities and its willingness to work with all stakeholders," said Lindsay Jones, senior director of policy and advocacy services for the CEC. "We need to find more innovative ways for the department to work with states and local districts to ensure that we increase student achievement at every level."

The department's action comes at the same time the federal agency has given some states leeway on how they meet the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind law, disappointing advocacy groups.

Read more of Nirvi Shah's On special Education article HERE.

State Special Education Rates Vary Widely

Rhode Island is the smallest state in the country, but it has every other state beat by one measure: A higher percentage of its students are in special education than anywhere else.
An analysis of U.S. Department of Education data shows that the percentage of students in special education varies widely among states. While Rhode Island tops the country at 18 percent, Texas, at 9 percent, is at the bottom. The average percentage across all states is 13 percent, and two-thirds of states are above that number, according to the data.
Those differences could have major financial implications for states. Special education funding can account for up to 20 percent of school budgets, according to a 2010 report by the Economic Policy Institute. Overall funding for special education has remained mostly intact during the recession, but looming cuts at the federal level could spell trouble if state and local resources, which already pick up most of the tab for special education, are stretched even further. Already, several states have asked for federal exemptions to allow them to cut special education support.
Schools have fairly high discretion in identifying special education students within the federal guidelines, according to officials at the Department of Education. Changing understandings of the disabilities, themselves, can also have an impact. Autism has been among the fastest growing categories in special education, but some researchers say that a proposed change to its medical definition would halt that growth.

Read more of Ben Weider's Disability Scoop article HERE.

$1.2 Million Grant at RIT/NTID Will Help Train Teachers of the Deaf

NTID’s Master of Science program in Secondary Education (MSSE) has received a $1.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to help recruit and train teachers of the deaf and hard of hearing.

Much of the grant, over five years, will be used for scholarships to support students studying to become teachers of the deaf with a focus in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math). In addition, prospective teachers of the deaf who are African American, Latin American, Native American and Asian American will be supported in an attempt to offset the national shortage of teachers with diverse backgrounds who are qualified to teach deaf and hard-of-hearing students.

“The United States faces a critical shortage of teachers qualifies to teach in STEM disciplines,” says NTID President Gerry Buckley. “The shortage of STEM teamers who are qualified to teach deaf and hard-of-hearing students is particularly pronounced. As a leader in technological education and in preparing teachers of the deaf, NTID is well positioned to help address this significant national need.”

Read more of the Rochester Institute of Technology post HERE.