Excelling Teaching & Learning : Special Education
	Learning Resource Center Programs Self-Contained Programs Special Education Services Statement of Philosophy Special Education Coordinators Special Education Staff Adapted Physical Education Assistive Technology Specialists Autism Specialists/STM Trainers Behavior Management/Emotional Disabilities Specialist EVIT Transition Specialist EXCENT Specialist Life Skills Specialist Preschool Program (PANDA)

Statement of Philosophy

Special Education Services in Scottsdale Unified School District will offer the following to disabled students and their parents:

• A free appropriate public education to all students with disabilities enrolled in the district.
• Special education in the Least Restrictive Environment (L.R.E.). Students with disabilities are educated with non-disabled students to an extent that will appropriately meet each student’s unique needs.
• A continuum of services will be available to students enrolled in a special program, including participation in physical education, art, and music.
• An individualized education program is developed for each student determined to have special needs by a team of related personnel, parents, and students when appropriate. The Individual Education Program will be reviewed at least annually at the team meeting.
• The student’s parents are consulted on a regular basis regarding student’s needs.
• Student education records are maintained in accordance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and Family Education Rights and Privacy Act.
• Staff development includes regular inservice training for staff providing educational services to students with disabilities.

Special Education Services

The goal of Special Education is to help students become independent learners, to teach learning strategies to prepare them to be successful in their regular classes, and to prepare them for high school and post-secondary experiences. This goal is achieved through a partnership between student, home and school.

Scottsdale’s well trained professional special educators effectively serve a broad range of disabled students through individualized planning and instruction.

Specialists serving our students with disabilities include special education certified teachers, psychologists, speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists, physical therapists, music therapists, teacher specialists, sign language interpreters, and paraeducators trained to serve students who are at least three but less than twenty two years of age and who have at least one of the following conditions: autism/autism spectrum disorder, emotional disability, hearing impairment, other health impairments, specific learning disability, mild, moderate or severe mental retardation, multiple disabilities, multiple disabilities with severe sensory impairment, orthopedic impairment, speech/language impairment, traumatic brain injury, and visual impairment, (preschool moderate delay, preschool severe delay, preschool speech/language delay).

The Special Education department includes professionals who specialize in working with students who have various disabilities and may need related services. Related services may include speech therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, adapted physical education and assistive technology. Students must meet eligibility requirements to enroll in a Special Education program.

Transition services provide purposeful, organized goals designed to help students move from middle school to high school and from high school to post-secondary education and/or employment and quality adult living. Regulations require consideration of transition services for students receiving Special Education by age 14, and each year thereafter.

Learning Resource Center Programs

The Learning Resource Center (LRC) offers various models of small group instruction, support, remediation, monitoring, and consultation of regular education classes.

Team Teaching may occur in regular education classes that serve Special Education students. It involves an agreement between regular education teachers and Special Education staff to develop lessons and share the instructional responsibilities.

Consultation is a component of all classes in which Special Education students participate. This involves the consistent communication between the Special Education teacher and the regular education teacher. This consultation may lead to modifications in a regular class, even though team teaching may not occur there.

Self-Contained Programs

Special classes are provided for students who, because of the severity of their disability, need a more intensive full-time Special Education program. The classes are limited in size to permit flexibility in meeting individual needs. These students are included in the regular classroom setting whenever appropriate. Placement decisions concerning self contained programs are made by individual education plan teams.

Special Education Coordinators