•  US Education News
•  IDEA Reauthorization Survey and Talking Points
•  Former CASE Executive Director Passes Away
•  Former CASE Executive Director Has Surgery
•  Position Statement on Vouchers
•  House Republicans Scheduled to Introduce IDEA Reauthorization Bill
•  House Republicans Introduce Bill to Reauthorize IDEA
•  Principles for Reauthorizing Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
•  ParaEducator Offers Discount

Schaffer v. Weist

A summary of the decision follows.

The Supreme Court ruled Monday, November 14, that parents who demand better special education programs for their children have the burden of proof in the challenges. The court did not rule on a separate issue, whether states could set their own policies and put the burden on the school officials. 

 A number of friend of the court briefs were filed. In support of the district: The Department of Justice, AASA, Council of Great City Schools, NEA, NSBA, and several states. Nine states submitted briefs in support of the parents.

The IDEA requires that school districts follow ....

Word Doc - Summary of Decision

PDF - Supreme Court Decision

IDEA Updates

Short Summary of IDEA 2004

Summary of Major Provisions
of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004

Comparison of IDEA 97 and 2004

Talking Points on the Reauthorization of IDEA 

July 2004

The Council of Administrators of Special Education, Inc (CASE) is a non-profit professional organization, which provides leadership and support to approximately 5,000 members by influencing policies and practices to improve the quality of education.  CASE is a division of the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), which is the largest professional organization of teachers, administrators, parents, and others concerned with the education of children with disabilities, giftedness, or both.  CASE and CEC have been engaged in a multi-year process of soliciting issues and input. CASE polled its membership on critical issues likely to be a part of the reauthorization process prior to the passage of HR 1350 and committee approval of S1248.  Members ranked the following issues as the top six concerns that should be addressed in the new legislation:

Though both Houses have now passed a version of HB 1350, it is looking less likely that a conference committee will actually be appointed and/or have sufficient time to develop a compromise bill.  Therefore, we would like to reiterate our stand on these issues in preparation for the 109^th Congress.

MANDATORY FULL FUNDING

In 1975, Congress adopted a full-funding formula that phased in funding increases intending to reach full funding by 1981. That has not happened.  While substantial additional dollars have been added in the last four years, the percentage of support is still less than 20%.

 CASE regrets the Hagel-Harkin Amendment did not pass.  Our members feel strongly that a guaranteed annual funding schedule to achieve mandatory full funding for IDEA in each federal budget will allow schools to plan for and more appropriately meet the educational needs of students with disabilities-as was the original intent of Congress.

 INTERAGENCY AGREEMENTS

A major continuing weakness in the construct of the IDEA is the failure to forcefully mandate the shared fiscal and programmatic participation of other federal and state agencies in the provision of IDEA-required services. This failure is particularly acute in the provision of alternative educational programs and settings for students under the disciplinary provisions of IDEA; and for students in transition from school to work and adult living.

Participation in and support for inter-agency teamwork must be obligatory for mental health, social services, juvenile justice and other state and federal agencies. Respecting transition to adult living, inter-agency teamwork must be obligatory for rehabilitation, labor and employment, social services and other appropriate federal and state agencies. CASE believes the dramatic school dropout rate and the disability unemployment rate would be greatly reduced if these actions were taken by the Congress.

CASE urges Congress to strengthen this important aspect of IDEA by enacting legislation that would mandate participation for other, related federal and state agencies.

HIGHLY QUALIFIED PERSONNEL

CASE strongly supports the concepts presented in the reauthorization of Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965 legislation that all students, including students with disabilities, should be served by staff appropriately prepared to meet the educational needs of students with disabilities.   This act is referred to as the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act and is specific to programs provided by the United States Department of Education, but CASE believes that students within the Canadian provinces and other countries are also entitled to similar quality instruction and programs.

“Highly qualified” as defined by NCLB relates only to the delivery of core content instruction. However, CASE believes the unique skills of the special educator in areas of methodologies, adaptations, accommodations, modifications, and functional skills, are indicative of a status of “highly qualified” in special education. Acknowledgement of the importance of these skills as well as core content competencies should be considered in the definition of “highly qualified” for all teachers. CASE further recognizes that educational licensure is within the jurisdiction of each state and province and does not intend to impose specific standards on this certification process. While CASE believes the language contained in Senate version of 1350 outlining “highly qualified” teacher, paraprofessional and related-service personnel specifically for students with disabilities is better than the House version, CASE continues to urge consideration for flexibility, recognizing that local and state issues are often hard to define in federal mandates.

CASE believes appropriately defining “highly qualified” teacher, paraprofessional and related-service personnel, strengthens the tenets of the IDEA. CASE believes any legislation and/or regulations should provide appropriate time for paraprofessionals, related-service personnel and teachers to meet standards for “highly qualified” as defined by the various state/federal/provincial guidelines. Recognizing the importance of a highly qualified work force to serve students with disabilities, CASE urges all levels of government (Executive/Legislative/State/Provincial/Local) to provide additional support for work force/professional development.

Recognizing the importance of a highly qualified work force to serve students with disabilities, CASE urges Congress to maintain the current structure of and provide additional support for comprehensive systems of personnel development of IDEA.

INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAMS

While CASE supports the direction of the proposed legislation to make the IEP process less cumbersome, CASE believes there is a direct correlation between the excessive amounts of litigation and the complexity of the IEP, including its length, the complexity of the process and the amount of special education paperwork. CASE urges shortening the IEP document, process and timelines in order to reduce the amount of paperwork and time devoted to non-instructional activities. CASE believes that in doing this, instructional time and effort for students with disabilities would be more focused, and would result in opportunities for increased student learning and programmatic success.  CASE supports the House version of 1350 in the area of optional multi-year IEPs for all age groups as opposed to the Senate version which starts at age 18. 

MEDIATION

CASE supports the expansion of the use of mediation as a method of resolving disputes prior to the filing of a Complaint(s). While CASE supports the Due Process Hearing as a means of resolving serious disagreements that might arise in the attempt to provide educational programming pursuant to the IDEA, CASE agrees with the concept presented in the Senate version of 1350 that parents and schools should have the option of attempting to resolve serious issues and concerns in a mediation-type forum. CASE agrees with the fact that any opportunity to resolve disagreements before Due Process would result in a significant saving of precious resources, both human and fiscal. However, these opportunities should be permissive and not mandatory.

SPECIFIC LEARNING DISABILITY IDENTIFICATION

CASE recognizes the need for clarification of what constitutes a “learning disability”, but urges caution be exercised in introducing changes that could ultimately result in an increased number of students being identified as “specific learning disabled.” CASE believes in retaining the requirement that a comprehensive multidisciplinary evaluation must be conducted prior to the identification of a “specific learning disability.”  While both versions contain the permissive use of Response to Intervention as well as the IQ discrepancy model, it will be critical for the rules and regulations to provide for adequate flexibility for districts to meet various requirements for intervention and eligibility teams. Adequate funding must be provided for additional staff development and intervention strategies.

OTHER ISSUES RELATED TO THE REAUTHORIZATION OF THE IDEA OF CONCERN TO CASE:

VOUCHERS:

CASE, as stated in its mission statement, is dedicated to the continued effort to improve public schools and educational opportunities for students and opposes any effort that would divert resources, including funds, from that goal. Please refer to the CASE position statement on Vouchers which can be accessed at www.casecec.org

DISCIPLINE:

CASE has historically believed cessation of educational services should not occur for any student.  For this reason we support a single system of dealing with students and discipline issues with the provision that the rights of students with disabilities are not jeopardized.  CASE continues to be concerned that the procedural aspects of the current IDEA discipline procedures present a significant drain on time and resources.  The importance of requiring interagency collaboration with agencies in this area cannot be emphasized enough.

PART C – INFANTS AND TODDLERS WITH DISABILITIES

CASE requests language be added to permanently authorize Part C Program under IDEA. In addition, CASE believes that Part C activities should be a part of the full-funding initiative.

PART D – NATIONAL ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE THE EDUCATION OF CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES

Industry consistently devotes approximately ten percent (10%) of its annual budget to research and development; IDEA must have an equivalent formula if we are to be held accountable to “scientific, research-based interventions”. CASE believes academic achievement should not be the sole emphasis of Part D since research is still needed in areas such as early intervention, independent living, social development, transition, and responsibilities for positive adult living. CASE also believes support beyond academic achievement for stakeholders should be continued. CASE also supports the inclusion of Subpart 4 of Part D, which authorizes “…resources to foster a safe learning environment for all students by improving the quality of interim alternative educational settings, providing more behavioral supports in schools, and supporting whole school interventions.”

TITLE II: AMENDMENTS TO THE REHABILITATION ACT OF 1973

CASE supports Title II which strengthens the provisions of transition services for students with disabilities. CASE believes this is an integral step in a fostering a comprehensive federal system of supports across agencies to students with disabilities.

For additional resource information from the Council of Administrators of Special Education, please contact Dr. Luann L. Purcell, Executive Director at lpurcell@bellsouth.net ; www.casecec.org 1-800-585-1753 or Donna Tinberg, CASE Policy and Legislative Chair at; dtinberg@novi.k12.mi.us; 248-449-1200,ext 2031. You may also contact Dr. Deborah A. Ziegler, Assistant Executive Director for Public Policy, the Council for Exceptional Children, at debz@cec.sped.org ; 1-800-224-6830 406

S. 1248 - Senate version of the IDEA Reauthorization

5/14/04

After a long wait, the US Senate overwhelmingly  passed S. 1248, the Senate version of the IDEA Reauthorization bill on Thursday, May 13, 2004.  To view the amendments and the full text of the bill go to http://thomas.loc.gov

Thursday’s action followed a full day’s activities on IDEA on Wednesday, May 12 when the Senate approved amendments from Senators Clinton; Gregg; and Murray, DeWine, and Feingold; but it failed to pass an amendment that would guarantee IDEA full funding within 6 years. 

The original full funding amendment, sponsored by Senators Hagel and Harkin and strongly supported by CEC and CASE, would have funded IDEA at an additional $2.2 billion per year for 8 years until full funding was reached. But in last-minute action, the sponsors changed the time parameters in the amendment to reach full funding in 6 years.  The Harkin-Hagel amendment did not carry offsetting cuts for the mandatory funding it would have required. Under Senate rules, the amendment needed 60 votes to waive the Budget Act requirement for such offsets.  Just 4 votes shy of approval, the Senate failed to pass the Hagel-Harkin amendment by a vote of 56-41.  To see the Roll Call vote on the Hagel-Harkin amendment, go to: http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=108&session=2&vote=00093

• To Read - Hagel’s Floor Speech On IDEA Full-Funding

The SB 1248 along with HB. 1350 must go to a conference committee and issues resolved and returned to the House and Senate prior to the end of the 108^th Session, target date-October 1, 2004.  Congressional members are scheduled for “district work” and Congress will therefore not be in session on the following dates: May 24-31; June 28-July 5; July 26—Sept 6. CASE members are encouraged to continue to contact their congressional delegates and express district concerns on IDEA reauthorization.

 

Resolution Honoring Dr. Celia "Jo" Thomason

4/24/04

Resolution - PDF Document

Call for Papers

4/24/04

Call for Papers
2004 CASE 15^th Annual Conference:  A New “IDEA” On Leadership
Please make sure that your presentation addresses one of the following LEADERSHIP topics:

• Budget guidance for Special Education Administrators

• Personnel Issues-Recruitment and Retention

• Implications and applications of NCLB for the Special Education Administrators

• Program Accountability-Efficacy

• Policy/Legislative/Legal Issues

Download Information in a PDF format - Call for Papers Doc.

Call for Nominations

10/3/03

Nomination Form

Past President Beverely McCoun is making a formal request for nominations for the following offices for the 2004-2006 term:

President-Elect:

Elected in even number years to serve a two-year term beginning July1.Creates a six-year term of leadership involvement in CASE

Treasurer

Elected in even number years to serve a two year term beginning July 1.
Duties begin with the new fiscal year, which is July 1.  
No officer shall be elected to the same office for more than two successive terms.

Canadian Representative

The elected representative shall serve the term of three years elected in 1998, 2001, 2004, and such interim thereafter. No Canadian Representative shall be elected to that office for more than two successive terms.  If no member is elected by July 1 of the election year, the CASE President shall appoint a Canadian Representative to serve until an election is held.

The nomination form is available as a pdf document or may be obtained through the CASE office.

Additional information may be obtained through contact with the CASE Office or Past President McCoun.  

IDEA Reauthorization

8/5/03

Based on feedback from the CASE Board of Directors and members present at the annual membership meeting held in Seattle Washington, April 9, 2003 an IDEA Reauthorization issues survey was published in the May-June issue of Just In CASE. The surveys were tallied and the results were shared with the Policy Legislation Committee, Chaired by Jerry Hime at their July meeting in Washington, DC. The committee used the results in writing the CASE Talking points used by the Executive Committee members during their visits to the Hill, July 15, 2003. The Executive Committee members made over 43 visits to Senators and Representatives, giving them each copies of the CASE Voucher Position Paper, the Talking Points, and other pertinent information. Members are encouraged to use these two documents as they talk with their congressional delegates as well as state legislators. 

For more information, contact Dr. Luann L. Purcell at lpurcell@bellsouth.net 

    Results        Talking Points 7-17-03        Voucher Position 4-9-03

Former CASE Executive Director Passes Away

7/31/03

Celia"Jo" Thomason, 67, an Albuquerque resident of 45 years, passed away July 25, 2003 . She struggled to recover after miraculously surviving an arterial hemorrhage in May. She is preceded in death by her father, Clarence Walker Failor. She is survived by her husband of 43 years, Tom W. Thomason, mother Mary Springer Dotts of Honolulu, Hawaii, sister Jane Sage of Denver , Colorado , nieces Amy Vozar and Lisa Powell of Dallas , Texas . 

She will be deeply missed by her many close friends and co-workers. Jo was a tireless advocate for exceptional children and people with disabilities. With a Doctorate in Education and a Masters Degree from the University of New Mexico and Bachelors degree from the University of Minnesota , Jo dedicated 45 years to teaching special education in New Mexico classrooms and universities world-wide. She was a Special Education Administrator for the Albuquerque Public Schools from 1969 to 1986. She was the Executive Director of the International Council of Administrators of Special Education (CASE), and a world leader for the advocacy and education of special needs children. She was the leader of the CASE delegation to the then Soviet Union in 1991 and the Chairperson for the 1987-88 International Conference on Special Education held in the People's Republic of China . This was the first open, multi-national conference for special education held in the world with speakers from over 20 countries. She was the President of the Council for Exceptional Children 1981-1982. She consulted with public school systems, state departments of education, universities throughout the United States, the U.S. Department of Education, the Malagasy Republic, the Mental Health Project, NYC and the White House Conference on Handicapped (1978). She was adjunct professor at the University of New Mexico (1980-1997) and visiting faculty member at the University of British Columbia (1987) and presented at over 200 conferences, seminars and institutes in the United States , Canada , England , Wales , the People's Republic of China and the USSR . 

Jo's Honors include CASE Outstanding Contributor Award (2002- now named the Jo Thomason Award), CEC Outstanding Contributor (1993), NM CEC Award for Outstanding Leadership (named Jo Thomason Award since 1986), Washington State University Outstanding Service Award, New Mexico School Administrators Outstanding Leadership Award. The Special Education community will miss Dr. Jo Thomason's commitment and expertise. Jo was Chairperson of the Foster Grandparents Advisory Board and served on the Albuquerque YWCA Board. 

Proud to be a liberal democrat, Jo was also an avid traveler, gardener, cross-word puzzler, reader, cook and loved to spend time with her dogs and cats. She will be missed by all her friends and family. 

Memorial service will be 2:00 P.M. , Friday, August 1 at Sunrise Chapel located at 7601 Wyoming , NE. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the 

El Rancho de Las Goladrinas Foundation 
334 Las Pinos Road 
Santa Fe , New Mexico 87505

Former CASE Executive Director has Surgery

Dr. Jo Thomason who retired as the CASE Executive Director, June 30, 2002 after 12 years of dedicated service, has successfully gone through surgery to repair an aortic aneurysm in her chest cavity.  She is anticipating a restful recovery in her Albuquerque home.  Warm wishes may be sent to:

 Dr. Jo Thomason 
  615 16^th Street, NW
 Albuquerque , NM 8710

Position Statement on Vouchers

IMPORTANT UPDATE: - 4/12/03

During the recent CEC convention in Seattle, the CASE Policy and Legislation Committee introduced a position statement on Vouchers to the Executive Committee, the Board of Directors, and the membership. The position had extensive input from members since the committee began working on it in July 2002. This position by CASE was well received by the CEC Board of Directors and the Representative Assembly.

Click here for Position Statement

House Republicans Introduce Bill to Reauthorize IDEA 

As we told you earlier in the week, House Republicans Wednesday evening introduced a bill to reauthorize the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which officially expired in 2002. Education Reform Subcommittee Chairman Mike Castle (R-DE) introduced H.R. 1350, entitled "Improving Education Results for Children with Disabilities Act of 2003."

To access the full text of the bill, go to: http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=108_cong_bills&docid=f:h1350ih.txt.pdf   

In a press release to announce the bill's introduction, the full House Education and the Workforce Committee said that the bill: "calls for reforms to strengthen accountability and results for students, reduce the IDEA paperwork burden for teachers, provide greater flexibility for local school districts to improve early intervention strategies, reduce the number of children who are wrongly placed in special education classes, reduce litigation and restore trust between parents and school districts, and align IDEA with the bipartisan No Child Left Behind Act signed by President Bush in January 2002. NCLB requires federally-funded schools to be accountable for providing a quality education to all students, including students with special needs."

The release provides a summary of the bill, as follows:

--Improving Education Results for Children with Disabilities Act--

The Improving Education Results for Children with Disabilities Act would improve education results for children with special needs by shifting the focus away from compliance with duplicative, burdensome, and confusing rules, and placing a renewed emphasis on ensuring that children with disabilities are learning. The following provides a more comprehensive summary of the provisions included in the bill:

Increasing Accountability and Improving Education Results for Children with Disabilities. The current IDEA system places too much emphasis on compliance with complicated rules, and not enough emphasis on ensuring that academic results are being delivered for children with special needs. As a result of this misplaced emphasis, too many children in special education classes have been left behind academically. This legislation will ensure that States align their accountability systems for students with disabilities to the NCLB accountability system; assure that the IEP specifically addresses academic achievement of students with disabilities; and give local school districts greater flexibility in reviewing the progress of a child by replacing benchmarks and short-term objectives with the regular reporting requirements of NCLB.

Reducing the paperwork burden. Good special education teachers are leaving the profession in frustration with the current IDEA system's overwhelming and unnecessary paperwork burden, contributing to what is becoming a chronic shortage of quality teachers in special education. This legislation will incorporate elements of Rep. Ric Keller's (R-FL) paperwork reduction bill, including the 3-year Individualized Education Plan (IEP) and the use of teleconferencing; create a ten state pilot program that allows states to reduce the IEP paperwork burden on teachers in order to increase instructional time and resources and improve results for students with disabilities; and streamline and decrease the paperwork burden on States and local school districts.

Improving early intervention strategies. Currently, too many children with reading problems are being identified as disabled and placed in special education where they do not necessarily belong. This over-identification hinders the academic development of students who are misidentified, and also takes valuable resources away from students who truly are learning disabled. Experts agree that strengthening the quality of reading instruction programs across the nation will significantly strengthen special education and address this problem directly. This legislation will give flexibility to local school districts to use up to 15% of their funds for pre-referral services for students before they are identified as needing special education.

Reducing overidentification/misidentification of nondisabled children, including minority youth. A disproportionate number of minority students are wrongly placed in special education rather than being provided positive behavioral interventions and supports and intensive educational interventions. As Education Secretary Rod Paige has noted, studies show the proportion of minority students identified in some disability categories is dramatically greater than their share of the overall population. More specifically, African-American students are labeled as mentally retarded and emotionally disturbed far out of proportion to their share of the student population. For minority students, misclassification or inappropriate placement in special education programs can have significant adverse consequences, particularly when these students are being removed from regular education settings and denied access to the core curriculum. This legislation will require local school districts with significant overidentification of minority students to operate pre-referral programs that work to reduce overidentification; eliminate the outdated "IQ-discrepancy" model that relies on a "wait to fail" approach for identification of "specific learning disabilities;" introduce a "response to intervention" model that identifies students with specific learning disabilities before the student is failing at grade level; and encourage greater use of programs that rely on positive behavioral interventions and supports.

Reducing over identification/misidentification of nondisabled children, including minority youth. A disproportionate number of minority students are wrongly placed in special education rather than being provided positive behavioral interventions and supports and intensive educational interventions. As Education Secretary Rod Paige has noted, studies show the proportion of minority students identified in some disability categories is dramatically greater than their share of the overall population. More specifically, African-American students are labeled as mentally retarded and emotionally disturbed far out of proportion to their share of the student population. For minority students, misclassification or inappropriate placement in special education programs can have significant adverse consequences, particularly when these students are being removed from regular education settings and denied access to the core curriculum. This legislation will: require local school districts with significant over identification of minority students to operate pre-referral programs that work to reduce over identification; eliminate outdated IQ-discrepancy model that relies on a "wait to fail" approach for identification of "specific learning disabilities"; introduce a "response to intervention" model that identifies students with specific learning disabilities before the student is failing at grade level; and encourage greater use of programs that rely on positive behavioral interventions and supports.

Supporting general education and special education teachers. A continuing shortage of special education teachers, coupled with a shortage of regular education teachers who are adequately trained to work with students with disabilities, hinders the educational achievement of students with disabilities under the current IDEA system. Both current and prospective special education and general education teachers should have professional development to address the educational needs of students with disabilities. This legislation will refocus State Professional Development Grants on professional development for school personnel working with students with disabilities; align IDEA with requirements of NCLB for "highly qualified" teachers so that all students with disabilities are taught by a highly qualified teacher in core content areas; and streamline Personnel Preparation programs and encourage training of both special education teachers and regular education teachers to work with students with disabilities.

Restoring trust and reducing litigation. Litigation under this Act has taken on more of a role of finding and punishing school districts for technical violations rather than being used to protect the substantive rights of children with disabilities. The type of litigation breeds an attitude of distrust between the parents and the school personnel rather than working cooperatively to find the best education placement and services for the child. This legislation will: encourage the use of mediation as early as possible and create opportunities for voluntary binding arbitration; require that complaints be clear and specific when they are filed; and establish a statute of limitations of one year from the date of the violation to file a complaint.

Encouraging innovative approaches to parental involvement and parental choice. Parents should be active participants in their child's education experience. However, often under the current IDEA, parents of students with disabilities are not fully informed or are often given limited options of where or how their child can be educated. This legislation will: enable parents and local school districts to agree to change the IEP without holding an IEP meeting; allow school districts to use IDEA funds to support supplemental educational services for students with disabilities in schools identified in need of improvement under NCLB; and reform parent training centers to focus on all children with disabilities and serve all parents of children with disabilities, especially low-income, minority, and limited English proficient parents.

Reforming special education finance and funding. The current funding streams under IDEA are complex without necessity. The funding streams under the Act should be simplified and a clear path created to reach the federal full spending goal of 40 percent. This legislation will simplify funding streams for IDEA Part B Grants to States and establish a clear 7-year path to reach the 40 percent goal of APPE through the discretionary appropriations process.

Ensuring school safety. Schools should be safe for all students and teachers. All students should be treated the same when it comes to discipline issues to ensure safety for all at the school. This legislation will require school districts to continue to provide educational services to students with disabilities while allowing school district personnel to have one uniform discipline policy for all children.

To read the entire press release, go to: http://edworkforce.house.gov/press/press108/03mar/idea031903.htm 

CEC's Public Policy Unit is currently reviewing the entire bill, and we will provide you with an in-depth summary as soon as we can.

House Republicans Scheduled to Introduce IDEA Reauthorization Bill

On Monday night, staff from the House Education and the Workforce Committee invited key representatives of major education and disability organizations to a briefing about IDEA reauthorization, noting that they are planning on introducing a bill sometime today (Wednesday). CEC's Assistant Executive Director for Public Policy, Deb Ziegler, attended the briefing.

The Committee staff indicated that they're expecting to mark up (consider) the bill in both the Subcommittee and full Committee by the time Congress recesses for its spring break on April 14. They also indicated that they're not planning on holding any more reauthorization hearings.

Although House Democrats have not signed onto it, the Republican members of the House Committee wanted to get a bill introduced to keep the reauthorization process moving. The members are hoping for a lot of discussion following the bill's introduction.

The staffers also discussed the fact that the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) covered a great deal of aspects concerning including students with disabilities in the general education curriculum; much more, in fact, than IDEA could. Under NCLB, districts are held accountable for the educational achievement of students with disabilities. The staffers indicated that they're not planning a major overhaul of IDEA; just implementing some "strategic improvements." Their ultimate goal is to align IDEA with NCLB.

The word is that Rep. Jim DeMint (R-SC) is planning to introduce a separate bill on school choice sometime this week. His plan will be similar to Florida's McKay Scholarship Program. While some details of specific provisions were provided, CEC has chosen not to summarize what may be in the bill until we actually see legislative language. However, we would like to share with you some of the major provisions that were discussed during Monday night's briefing:

1. Funding - no mandatory full funding of IDEA

2. Discipline - language is being negotiated between Boehner (R-OH) and Norwood (R-GA)

3. IEPs and IEP Process: (Principle of Do No Harm) - streamlining the form and the process

4. Procedural Safeguards - to reduce the litigious nature of IDEA

5. Early Childhood - no major changes are anticipated

6. Early Identification - preferral strategies to address disproportionalilty and the identification of children as learning disabled

7. Part D - consolidation and restructuring of the authorities

After a bill is issued, CEC will review it and provide you with a summary of its provisions as soon as possible.

Paige Releases Principles for Reauthorizing Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)

U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige today unveiled a set of principles to guide the Education Department in its work toward seeking reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the landmark statute that provides for the education of America's 6.5 million students with disabilities.

"Every child in America deserves the highest-quality education, including our children with disabilities," Secretary Paige said. "Our goal is to align IDEA with the principles of No Child Left Behind by ensuring accountability, more flexibility, more options for parents and an emphasis on doing what works to improve student achievement.  I look forward to working with Congress in the weeks and months ahead to achieve these goals."

The act, which comes up for reauthorization before Congress this year, guarantees a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment to students with disabilities.  At the time it was passed by Congress in 1975, more than a million students with disabilities were warehoused in institutions.

Today, many students with disabilities are educated in regular classrooms alongside their nondisabled peers.  Following is the text of the principles that will guide the department's work toward reauthorizing the act:

PRINCIPLES FOR REAUTHORIZING THE INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT

Since 1975, the Federal government has played an important role in ensuring that children with disabilities receive the best possible education through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).  President Bush's sweeping reforms in the No Child Left Behind Act made fundamental improvements in elementary and secondary education to enhance the education of children with disabilities by supporting accountability for results, expanded parental choice, a focus on what works, and increased local flexibility.  The President believes the next step for achieving excellence in the education of children with disabilities is significant reform of IDEA.

In 2001, the President created the Commission on Excellence in Special Education.  After 13 meetings and hearings across the country, the Commission delivered to the President its recommendations for improving special education and reforming IDEA.  President Bush believes the Commission's recommendations should serve as the starting point for reauthorization.  The President intends to work with the Congress to renew IDEA based on the following principles:

1.      STRONGER ACCOUNTABILITY FOR RESULTS

Children with disabilities must be considered as general education students first. Under No Child Left Behind (NCLB), states are responsible for implementing a single accountability system for all students based on strong academic standards for what every child should know and learn, including children with disabilities.  IDEA must incorporate the NCLB principles of assessment for children receiving special education and align with NCLB accordingly to enhance state efforts to improve student achievement. 

Consistent with those principles, IDEA should ensure that students with disabilities have access to and make progress in the general curriculum, and are appropriately included in state accountability systems.  IDEA must move from a culture of compliance with process to a culture of accountability for results.  Consequently, IDEA eligibility and compliance paperwork requirements at the federal level must be streamlined and focused on improving results for students with disabilities.  In return for that rigorous accountability, states and localities will receive significant annual increases in IDEA funding.  This funding would be on a discretionary basis.

2.      SIMPLIFY PAPERWORK FOR STATES AND COMMUNITIES AND INCREASE FLEXIBILITY FOR ALL

IDEA guarantees the availability of a free appropriate public education for children with disabilities.  Yet the law itself often hampers effective education by requiring vast amounts of paperwork and substantial procedural requirements for teachers and administrators.  IDEA should be simplified and unnecessary paperwork eliminated by focusing on results.  This will increase the time spent by teachers on teaching and minimize time currently spent on procedural and non-instructional tasks while still preserving the fundamental rights of students with disabilities.  States should be allowed to submit plans to the Department to streamline and simplify paperwork while demonstrating compliance.

States and localities should have more flexibility to use federal special education money to provide direct services for students with disabilities.  This will permit states, for example, to create intrastate risk pools for the highest cost children with disabilities, or to increase professional development opportunities for teachers, paraeducators, other service personnel and administrators. In addition, the current process for states to demonstrate their eligibility to receive IDEA funds must be streamlined and simplified.

Meaningful involvement for parents of students with disabilities should also include earlier and easier access to alternative dispute resolution.  IDEA should expand and improve upon existing dispute resolution processes through a variety of strategies including improved mediation practices; allowing mediation to be requested at any time during the dispute resolution process; and permitting the use of voluntary binding arbitration for both parents and districts.  The law should also simplify the complexities of IDEA's discipline requirements.  Changes would improve school safety while preserving protections for students with disabilities.

3.      DOING WHAT WORKS

IDEA should target federal education dollars to implement research-based practices that have been proven to help students with disabilities learn.  Half of the more than 6 million children currently served under IDEA have learning disabilities and about 90 percent of them exhibit reading difficulties as their primary demonstration of their specific learning disability.  IDEA should ensure the revision of outdated regulations that result in the misidentification of students as having disabilities because they did not receive appropriate instruction (in areas such as reading) in their early years.  This will help schools focus on identification practices that promote earlier intervention, dramatically reducing the misidentification of students with learning disabilities.

More broadly, IDEA should ensure that schools, local education agencies, state education agencies and the Federal Department of Education quickly adopt research and evidence-based practices.  OSERS research and training activities should be aligned with the work of the Department's Institute of Education Sciences .  Additionally, information should be provided to families and teachers on effective programs based on rigorous research, including requiring the federally funded parent training centers to educate parents about effective research that improves results for students with disabilities.  IDEA should also reflect the research principles outlined by the President's Commission on Excellence in Special Education while adhering to the standards for high quality research established by the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002.

4.      INCREASE CHOICES AND MEANINGFUL INVOLVEMENT FOR PARENTS

A core principle of IDEA is identifying and serving all children with disabilities regardless of the type of school they attend-traditional public, public charter, private, and parochial. IDEA currently empowers parents of children with disabilities to participate in the selection of schools and services for their children and where those services will be provided.  For instance, IDEA permits parents to move their child out of a special education program to the private program of their choice if an IEP team agrees the child would be more appropriately served in such a program.

Yet too often these choices for students with disabilities are limited by arbitrary decisions.  IDEA should expand opportunities to help parents, schools, and teachers choose appropriate services and programs for children with disabilities, including the charter and private schools of their choice.  States should then measure and report academic achievement results for all students benefiting from IDEA funds, regardless of what schools they choose to attend.

Note to editors: For more information about IDEA, visit  http://www.ed.gov/offices/OSERS/OSEP/. 

ParaEducator Offers Discount (11/02)

The Products and Publication committee and the Executive Committee of the Council of Administrators of Special Education is proud to endorse The ParaEducator Learning Network as a product that meets rigorous standards (see related article) and has the potential of meeting needs identified by our membership in the area of improving classroom instruction through better prepared/trained personnel. The ParaEducator Learning Network satisfies most of the basic skills that paraeducators and instructional assistants require to be effective in the classroom.  The training is flexible: it can provide a substantial portion of the required training or serve as an excellent supplement to existing staff development programs.  The Learning Network also helps schools meet the challenge of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. 

Because of t