Federal Law and Pennsylvania State Law gives important educational rights to handicapped children for special education. Parents have the right to participate in the planning of their child's program. If you feel your child is "exceptional", please request an evaluation to be done by the school district.
The District has developed a referral system that is designed to provide instructional support services and special education services, if deemed appropriate. This system follows the policies and procedures outlined in the state regulations and standards governing special education. The District, in conjunction with Intermediate Unit #1, provides a continuum of services to meet the needs of handicapped students.
1. A student exhibiting academic, attendance, and/or behavioral difficulty is referred for screening at the building level.
2. A screening team meets to discuss referral and make appropriate recommendations.
3. School counselor collects completed packet from referring teacher making sure that all information (questionnaires, rating scales, student's grades, achievement test results) is included and forwards information to the business office.
4. Local Education Representative (LEA) sends permission to evaluate, parent questionnaire, and Notice of Parents' Rights to parent/guardian. The LEA puts the parental input together with the school data to form the packet, which is then sent to the psychologists.
5. Psychologist completes assessment and writes a draft evaluation report (ER). The multi-disciplinary team (MDT) meets, regarding whether or not student is a child with a disability, reviews recommendations, signs and finalizes ER.
6. The Individualized Education Program (IEP) Team meets and makes decisions regarding the strengths and the needs of the students as well as how to meet the student's educational needs.
7. LEA Representative presents (NOREP) Notice of Recommended Educational Placement to parent