RE: IDEA Reauthorization????

November 18, 2004

Thanks Jeff,

I sent tons of faxes on Friday and Monday and I

wondered how things went.

Candis

--- Jeff Sell <JZSell@...> wrote:

> :

> The Conference Committee Report passed 19-1 (Sen.

> Jeffords was the

> only nay vote). Bless that man, he voted no because

> the " Harkin full

> funding " amendment was voted down during the Final

> Markup of S 1248.

> We expect that the full Senate and House will be

> voting as early as

> tomorrow on the combined bill. Going through the

> full report now.

> Here is a brief summary-- " It could have been MUCH

> worse " ; now, a

> longer summary:

>

> Summary of the Individuals with Disabilities

> Education Act of 2004

>

> ~ Protects the civil right of students with

> disabilities to a free

> appropriate public education

> ~ Vigorously enforces provisions by giving the U.S.

> Secretary of Education

> and state education agencies greater power and new

> tools to measure

> compliance and impose sanctions when schools fail

> to meet standards.

> ~ Requires states to develop a plan, establish

> targets and meet them in the

> delivery of a free appropriate public education,

> general supervision,

> transition services, and disproportionate

> representation of minorities.

> ~ Makes agreements in dispute resolution and due

> process binding.

> ~ Establishes competency standards for the training

> of hearing officers.

> Makes IDEA work for students, parents, teachers,

> school administrators, and

> school districts

> ~ Provides new opportunities for parents and

> schools to address concerns

> before the need for a due process hearing and

> encourages parents and

> schools to resolve differences by clarifying that

> mediation is available at

> any time.

> ~ Provides greater flexibility for parents and

> schools by allowing them to

> agree to make minor changes to a child´s IEP during

> the school year without

> reconvening the IEP team, and encouraging the

> consolidation of IEP and

> reevaluation meetings.

> ~ Increases parental involvement in IEP meetings by

> allowing the use of

> teleconferencing, video conferencing, and other

> alternative means of

> participation.

> ~ Provides increased resources to assist parents

> with complaint resolution

> and due process through Parent Training Institutes.

>

> ~ Requires that initial evaluations occur within 60

> days of referral unless

> the state currently has a policy that establishes a

> timeline for

> evaluation.

> ~ Encourages Parent Training Institutes to focus on

> improving parent-school

> collaboration and early, effective dispute

> resolution.

> ~ Enhances the preparation, professional

> development, and support for

> special educators and other school personnel

> working with students with

> disabilities to ensure that these educators possess

> the necessary skills

> and knowledge to provide instruction to students,

> including by creating a

> new grant program for institutions of higher

> education focused exclusively

> on training beginning special educators. Provides

> quality services and

> instruction at all stages, from early childhood

> through graduation from

> high school

> ~ Maintains early intervention and preschool

> special education programs for

> infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with

> disabilities, including allowing

> states to create a system that gives parents the

> choice to have their child

> continue early intervention services until the age

> of five.

> ~ Requires that infants and toddlers who are

> abused, neglected,

> drug-exposed, or have experienced family violence,

> be referred for early

> intervention.

> ~ Allows for the development of new approaches to

> determine whether

> students have specific learning disabilities by

> clarifying that schools are

> not limited to using the IQ-achievement discrepancy

> model.

> ~ Authorizes local educational agencies to use up

> to 15% of IDEA funds to

> develop a comprehensive educational support system

> for students without

> disabilities in grades k-12 who require additional

> academic and behavioral

> supports to succeed in a general education

> environment.

> ~ Establishes a state-level risk pool fund to

> assist local educational

> agencies in providing FAPE to high-need children.

> ~ Requires schools to provide short-term objectives

> for students with

> significant disabilities, and for all students,

> quarterly reports to

> parents on their child's progress toward meeting

> annual IEP goals and how

> that progress is being measured.

> ~ Emphasizes academic achievement and functional

> performance within a

> child´s individualized education program (IEP).

> ~ Simplifies the rules for transition services

> (activities that help a

> student begin planning for life after high school)

> by requiring that

> substantive transition services and planning begin

> at age 16.

> ~ Provides an option for 15 states to develop a

> 3-year IEP for students

> ages 18 to 21, to focus parents and schools on

> long-term goals for helping

> the student transition to postsecondary activities.

>

> ~ Provides for the establishment or designation of a

> National Instructional

> Materials Access Center, to provide schools with a

> one-stop provider of

> textbooks or other materials for students who are

> blind or with other

> disabilities. [on HOLD]

> ~ Strengthens the involvement of the State

> vocational rehabilitation system

> with disabled students who are still in secondary

> school.

> ~ Requires all special education teachers to be

> highly qualified by the

> 2006-2007 school year and designates 100% of state

> program improvement

> grants to support professional development of

> teachers. [timeline on HOLD]

> ~ Improves outreach and services to homeless,

> foster care and other youth

> by clarifying state child find responsibilities,

> simplifying parent or

> guardian involvement and improving coordination

> between schools. Improves

> Discipline and Ensures Safety

> ~ Improves current discipline provisions by

> simplifying the framework for

> schools to administer the law, while ensuring the

> rights and the safety of

> all children.

> ~ Requires schools to determine if a child´s

> behavior was the result of

> their disability or poor implementation of their

> IEP when considering a

> disciplinary action.

> ~ Requires that schools conduct functional

> behavioral assessments and give

> behavioral services to students who are disciplined

> beyond 10 days, in

> order to prevent future behavior problems.

> ~ Requires that schools continue providing services

> that enable students

> who are disciplined to participate in the general

> curriculum and meet their

> IEP goals.

> ~ Establishes a new program to develop and enhance

> behavioral supports in

> schools while improving the quality of interim

> alternative education

> settings. Integrates the Individuals with

> Disabilities Education Act with

> the Elementary and Secondary Education Act

> ~ Provides for a national study of valid and

> reliable alternate assessment

> systems and how alternate assessments align with

> state content standards.

> ~ Ensures that local educational agencies measure

> the performance of

> students with disabilities on State or

> district-wide assessments, including

> alternate assessments aligned to the State´s

> academic content standards or

> extended standards.

>

=== message truncated ===

November 18, 2004

Thanks Jeff,

I sent tons of faxes on Friday and Monday and I

wondered how things went.

Candis

--- Jeff Sell <JZSell@...> wrote:

> :

> The Conference Committee Report passed 19-1 (Sen.

> Jeffords was the

> only nay vote). Bless that man, he voted no because

> the " Harkin full

> funding " amendment was voted down during the Final

> Markup of S 1248.

> We expect that the full Senate and House will be

> voting as early as

> tomorrow on the combined bill. Going through the

> full report now.

> Here is a brief summary-- " It could have been MUCH

> worse " ; now, a

> longer summary:

>

> Summary of the Individuals with Disabilities

> Education Act of 2004

>

> ~ Protects the civil right of students with

> disabilities to a free

> appropriate public education

> ~ Vigorously enforces provisions by giving the U.S.

> Secretary of Education

> and state education agencies greater power and new

> tools to measure

> compliance and impose sanctions when schools fail

> to meet standards.

> ~ Requires states to develop a plan, establish

> targets and meet them in the

> delivery of a free appropriate public education,

> general supervision,

> transition services, and disproportionate

> representation of minorities.

> ~ Makes agreements in dispute resolution and due

> process binding.

> ~ Establishes competency standards for the training

> of hearing officers.

> Makes IDEA work for students, parents, teachers,

> school administrators, and

> school districts

> ~ Provides new opportunities for parents and

> schools to address concerns

> before the need for a due process hearing and

> encourages parents and

> schools to resolve differences by clarifying that

> mediation is available at

> any time.

> ~ Provides greater flexibility for parents and

> schools by allowing them to

> agree to make minor changes to a child´s IEP during

> the school year without

> reconvening the IEP team, and encouraging the

> consolidation of IEP and

> reevaluation meetings.

> ~ Increases parental involvement in IEP meetings by

> allowing the use of

> teleconferencing, video conferencing, and other

> alternative means of

> participation.

> ~ Provides increased resources to assist parents

> with complaint resolution

> and due process through Parent Training Institutes.

>

> ~ Requires that initial evaluations occur within 60

> days of referral unless

> the state currently has a policy that establishes a

> timeline for

> evaluation.

> ~ Encourages Parent Training Institutes to focus on

> improving parent-school

> collaboration and early, effective dispute

> resolution.

> ~ Enhances the preparation, professional

> development, and support for

> special educators and other school personnel

> working with students with

> disabilities to ensure that these educators possess

> the necessary skills

> and knowledge to provide instruction to students,

> including by creating a

> new grant program for institutions of higher

> education focused exclusively

> on training beginning special educators. Provides

> quality services and

> instruction at all stages, from early childhood

> through graduation from

> high school

> ~ Maintains early intervention and preschool

> special education programs for

> infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with

> disabilities, including allowing

> states to create a system that gives parents the

> choice to have their child

> continue early intervention services until the age

> of five.

> ~ Requires that infants and toddlers who are

> abused, neglected,

> drug-exposed, or have experienced family violence,

> be referred for early

> intervention.

> ~ Allows for the development of new approaches to

> determine whether

> students have specific learning disabilities by

> clarifying that schools are

> not limited to using the IQ-achievement discrepancy

> model.

> ~ Authorizes local educational agencies to use up

> to 15% of IDEA funds to

> develop a comprehensive educational support system

> for students without

> disabilities in grades k-12 who require additional

> academic and behavioral

> supports to succeed in a general education

> environment.

> ~ Establishes a state-level risk pool fund to

> assist local educational

> agencies in providing FAPE to high-need children.

> ~ Requires schools to provide short-term objectives

> for students with

> significant disabilities, and for all students,

> quarterly reports to

> parents on their child's progress toward meeting

> annual IEP goals and how

> that progress is being measured.

> ~ Emphasizes academic achievement and functional

> performance within a

> child´s individualized education program (IEP).

> ~ Simplifies the rules for transition services

> (activities that help a

> student begin planning for life after high school)

> by requiring that

> substantive transition services and planning begin

> at age 16.

> ~ Provides an option for 15 states to develop a

> 3-year IEP for students

> ages 18 to 21, to focus parents and schools on

> long-term goals for helping

> the student transition to postsecondary activities.

>

> ~ Provides for the establishment or designation of a

> National Instructional

> Materials Access Center, to provide schools with a

> one-stop provider of

> textbooks or other materials for students who are

> blind or with other

> disabilities. [on HOLD]

> ~ Strengthens the involvement of the State

> vocational rehabilitation system

> with disabled students who are still in secondary

> school.

> ~ Requires all special education teachers to be

> highly qualified by the

> 2006-2007 school year and designates 100% of state

> program improvement

> grants to support professional development of

> teachers. [timeline on HOLD]

> ~ Improves outreach and services to homeless,

> foster care and other youth

> by clarifying state child find responsibilities,

> simplifying parent or

> guardian involvement and improving coordination

> between schools. Improves

> Discipline and Ensures Safety

> ~ Improves current discipline provisions by

> simplifying the framework for

> schools to administer the law, while ensuring the

> rights and the safety of

> all children.

> ~ Requires schools to determine if a child´s

> behavior was the result of

> their disability or poor implementation of their

> IEP when considering a

> disciplinary action.

> ~ Requires that schools conduct functional

> behavioral assessments and give

> behavioral services to students who are disciplined

> beyond 10 days, in

> order to prevent future behavior problems.

> ~ Requires that schools continue providing services

> that enable students

> who are disciplined to participate in the general

> curriculum and meet their

> IEP goals.

> ~ Establishes a new program to develop and enhance

> behavioral supports in

> schools while improving the quality of interim

> alternative education

> settings. Integrates the Individuals with

> Disabilities Education Act with

> the Elementary and Secondary Education Act

> ~ Provides for a national study of valid and

> reliable alternate assessment

> systems and how alternate assessments align with

> state content standards.

> ~ Ensures that local educational agencies measure

> the performance of

> students with disabilities on State or

> district-wide assessments, including

> alternate assessments aligned to the State´s

> academic content standards or

> extended standards.

>

=== message truncated ===

November 18, 2004

-Here are links for the Conference Report and the Press Release ...

(begin URL)

http://edworkforce.house.gov/issues/108th/education/idea/idea.htm

(end URL)

(begin URL)

http://edworkforce.house.gov/issues/108th/education/idea/1350confsumma

ry.htm (end URL)

(begin URL)

http://edworkforce.house.gov/press/press108/second/11nov/idea111704.ht

m (end URL)

-- In Autism Treatment ,

" Jeff Sell " JZSell@J...> wrote:

Candis:Bless you, they had an impact. Lee Grossman called me from the

hearing room yesterday to tell me that the ASA Action Alert generated

more than 7,000 faxes and phone calls and, " the message was heard "

according to Rep. , Chairman Boehner, Sen. Jeffords, Sen.

Sessions and Sen. Kennedy.

> I'm heading to DC in a few hours...