Regional Regulatory Overview Southern Region – March 31, 2008 East Bay Region – April 3, 2008 West Bay Region – April 28, 2008 Northern Region – April 30, 2008 Providence – May 14, 2008 RI Board of Regents Regulations Governing the Education of Children with Disabilities

Regulatory Timelines December 19, 2007 Regulations approved by Board of Regents July 1, 2008 Regulations take effect (

Considerations for Change Comply with Federal regulatory language Achieve consistency and coherency within and among regulations Encourage flexibility and creativity for better meeting student strength and need Maximize FAPE in the LRE Reflection of national trends and practice Support a single unified system of service delivery to all learners

What Didnt Change Families retain all due process rights and IEPs developed prior to July 1, 2008 are valid until reviewed/revised through the IEP process

Summary of Major Points for Consideration 1.Definition of Child with a Disability 2.Parental Consent to bill Public Insurers 3.NIMAS/NIMAC 4.Individualized Education Program 5.Extended School Year Services 6.Speech and Language Services 7.Parentally Placed Private School Students 8.Learning Disability Identification 9.Personnel Policy and Plan

Definition - Child with a Disability §300.8 Developmental Delay Children aged 3 through 8 experiencing developmental delays (currently through age 5/up to the childs sixth birthday) –Child with a disability, for children aged 3 through 8 (up to the childs ninth birthday), includes a child who shall qualify for special education and related services when the child is experiencing a developmental delay or a disability, as determined by the evaluation process

Definition - Child with a Disability §300.8 Developmental Delay Implementation Guidance IEP teams meet to determine eligibility for students who will turn 6 before July 1, –Student may continue to be eligible under any disability category including developmental delay

§ Parental Consent Parental Consent to bill Public Insurers, including Medicaid –LEAs must obtain informed parental consent, consistent with § 300.9, each time access to public benefits or insurance is sought; and –Notify parents that the parents refusal to allow access to their public benefits or insurance does not relieve the public agency of its responsibility to ensure that all required services are provided at no cost to the parents.

§ Parental Consent Parental Consent Workgroup Convened January 2008 –Participants include representation: RIPIN, Districts, DCYF, ARIASE, RIASBO and RITAP Anticipated Outcomes April 2008 –Sample Consent Form –Sample Brochure –Best Practices Guide

NIMAS/NIMAC For children with disabilities who need instructional materials in accessible formats, LEAs must take all reasonable steps to provide those materials at the same time as other children receive them In contracts with textbook publishers, include language to require the publisher to provide electronic files containing the contents of print instructional materials to NIMAC

NIMAS/NIMAC Implementation Guidance Include NIMAS/NIMAC contract language in contracts with publishers Contact RI Materials Access Center (RIMAC) at the Northern RI Collaborative –RIMAC is the new Rhode Island statewide system to implement the NIMAS and NIMAC requirements in part B of IDEA.

IEP Implementation Guidance: IEPs developed, amended or reviewed beginning July 1, 2008 must use new Rhode Island process and product and be consistent with RI Regulations. Procedural Safeguards available (English and Spanish) on June 1, 2008

IEP Highlights Two (2) IEP forms – pre and post 14 years of age Signatures required only for initial consent to evaluate, re-evaluations and initial consent for services. Participation in IEP development continues to be recorded Description of Specially Designed Instruction Measurable Post-school Transition Goals

IEP Professional Development New IEP Process and Products Statewide Professional Development is offered and the schedule and registration information is located at: District administrators may request individual district professional development by contacting: Parent groups may request professional development by contacting:

Extended School Year Services The new regulations do not: Prohibit 230 day programming for individual students requiring that level of support

Extended School Year Services Implementation Guidance IEP team decisions on ESY services made prior to July 1, 2008 should be based upon the current 230 day requirement. IEP team decisions made beginning July 1, 2008 must follow the RI Regulations, including RI ESY Standards

Extended School Year Services ESY Standards Workgroup Convening in April Final Recommendations to the Board of Regents April-May

Speech-Language Services The new regulations do not: Remove Speech and Language Impairment as a disability category Affect students under the age of nine Affect students of any age who presently receive speech and language pathology as a related service in addition to specially designed instruction

Speech-Language Services & Speech-language pathology services are special education services for students through eight years of age (up to the childs ninth birthday) Speech-language pathology is a related service as identified through the IEP process for children age three through twenty-one

Speech /Language Services and Speech/language therapy for students 9 years of age and older is a related service and cannot be a stand-alone service, regardless of disability category Consistent with IDEA, there is no direct relationship between the eligibility category and the type of service to be provided

Speech-Language Services & Implementation Guidance For children who will be nine or older on July 1, 2008 –IEP teams should continue to base services on the students current needs Speech and language pathology services for students aged nine and older who are not eligible for special education may receive services through a different delivery stream provided under 504 interventions within general education

Parentally Placed Private School Students PPPSS Regulations effective until July 1, 2009: –LEA of eligible childs private school is responsible for providing services through a service plan based on proportionate share only. and –LEA of eligible childs residence is responsible for providing FAPE. (supplemental IEP) Regulations effective July 1, 2009: –LEA of eligible childs private school is responsible for providing services through a service plan based on proportionate share only.

Parentally Placed Private School Students PPPSS Implementation Guidance District of location –Consultation with private schools –Child Find for all students with disabilities enrolled in private schools located in the district –Proportionate share of federal funds –Service plans –Obtain parental consent District of residence –Obtain parental consent –IEPs Complementary to Service Plans until July 1, 2009

Identification of a Specific Learning Disability Where have we been? –Discrepancy Model Where are we now? –Discrepancy Model and Response to Intervention Where are we going? –Response to Intervention

Identification of a Specific Learning Disability Implementation Guidance Continue to build responsive systems of supports and interventions Full implementation of RTI based on the State Criteria will be gradual Utilize State RTI trainings ( Guidance documents ( Forthcoming guidance –State Criteria to be approved by RI Board of Regents –Updated guidance documents and forms

Personnel Requirements District Staffing Policy District Staffing Policy approved by LEA School Committee –Filed with RIDE –Must include evidence of: The relationship between the anticipated needs of the students, including the delivery FAPE in the LRE, and the determination of number and types of personnel; and Public input RIDE District Staffing Policy Guidance –To be distributed to Superintendents and School Committee Association

Staffing Policy To meet the requirements for submission of a Staffing Policy, districts may select one of the following options and submit to RIDE with the CRP The district will develop a new district Staffing Policy in accordance with regulations The district will submit a current district Policy which meets the criteria outlined in the regulations in that it speaks to meeting the needs of students The district will submit a written statement describing their plan to develop a new staffing Policy; including a timeline to meet this regulation

Personnel Requirements District Staffing Plan Staffing Patterns –Staffing patterns for providing services to students with IEPs –Staffing for general education interventions for students without IEPs Basis for Assignment of Personnel –Description of LEA basis for assignment of personnel Continuous Evaluation of the Staffing Plan –LEA Plan for Evaluation –LEA Plan for Internal Monitoring Assurances –Maintenance of Effort –Highly Qualified Teachers –Appropriate Physical Space for instruction –FAPE in the LRE

District Staffing Plan To meet the requirements for submission of a district Staffing Plan, districts may select one of the following options and submit the documentation to RIDE with the district CRP. The district will continue to base staffing on the ratios and class size maximums in the current regulations and will submit the Staffing Plan. The district will not base staffing on the ratios and class size maximums in the current regulations and will complete a Staffing Plan in its entirety

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