SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES

OVERVIEW

Fair Grove Public Schools acknowledges the need to create learning environments that are individualized and promote the success of all students. It is the desire of the Fair Grove district to engage parents and students in the educational process as they prepare to make a contribution in a global society. Fair Grove has received the Distinction in Performance award and continues to strive for academic excellence.

We believe:

  • It is the nature of all people to learn

  • All people are entitled to respect

  • All people have equal worth

  • Learning always leads to opportunity

  • People thrive in a caring environment

  • Everyone deserves the opportunity to maximize his/her unique abilities

  • Success requires constant improvement

  • Growth requires risk

  • All people deserve a fair return on their investment of effort, time and resources

EARLY CHILDHOOD SPECIAL EDUCATION

(Information from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education)

School districts and other public agencies responsible for providing special education must offer a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) to children who have been identified as eligible under the eligibility criteria outlined in the Missouri State Plan for Special Education as early as a child's third birthday. Special Education and related services for preschool age is referred to as early childhood special education (ECSE).

SCHOOL AGED SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES

If you are concerned that your student may have an educational disability then please contact the student’s teacher, building principal, or Director of Student Services. The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has a flowchart of the process. Fair Grove R-X School district utilizes a Response to Intervention Model in grades K-4 and a more traditional discrepancy model in grades 5-12.

RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION

As part of the model in the elementary school, universal screenings are completed on each student three times a year. Additionally, any student who falls below the 25th percentile (below average range) is progress monitored on a weekly, bi-monthly, or monthly basis.

If a student is not making adequate progress, a referral will be initiated to the student assistance team (SAT team).

The Student Assistance Team reviews and analyzes progress monitoring data to determine a student’s response to intervention. They investigate individual student growth results to inform next steps in a student’s intervention plan. Analyzing data, assuring treatment fidelity and documenting communication are all important components of this group. The Student Assistance Team includes: School Psychologist/Director of Student Services, Building Principal, Interventionists, Classroom Teacher, Speech/Language Pathologist, and Parent. As a parent, you are welcome to come participate in the SAT team meetings regarding your child.

Key expectations for Student Assistance Team:

  • Support referring teacher

  • Analyze progress monitoring data

  • Adhere to the process of problem solving

  • Determine student’s response to intervention

  • Make instructional changes as determined by individual need

  • Create additional intervention plans for students

It is important to note that elementary students can receive general education intervention services in all areas.

PUBLIC NOTICE

All responsible public agencies are required to locate, evaluate, and identify children with disabilities who are under the jurisdiction of the agency, regardless of the severity of the disability, including children attending private schools, children who live outside the district but are attending a private school within the district, highly mobile children, such as migrant and homeless children, children who are wards of the state, and children who are suspected of having a disability and in need of special education even though they are advancing from grade to grade. The Fair Grove R-10 school district assures that it will provide a free, appropriate public education (FAPE) to all eligible children with disabilities between the ages of 3 and 21 under its jurisdiction. Disabilities include autism, deaf/blindness, emotional disorders, hearing impairment and deafness, mental retardation/intellectual disability, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairment, other health impairments, specific learning disabilities, speech or language impairment, traumatic brain injury, visual impairment/blindness and young child with a developmental delay.

The Fair Grove R-10 school district assures that it will provide information and referral services necessary to assist the State in the implementation of early intervention services for infants and toddlers eligible for the Missouri First Steps program.

The Fair Grove R-10 school district assures that personally identifiable information collected, used, or maintained by the agency for the purposes of identification, evaluation, placement or provision of FAPE of children with disabilities may be inspected and/or reviewed by their parents/guardians. Parents/guardians may request amendment to the educational record if the parent/guardian believes the record is inaccurate, misleading, or violates the privacy or other rights of their child. Parents have the right to file complaints with the U.S. Department of Education or the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education concerning alleged failures by the district to meet the requirements of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

The Fair Grove R-10 school district has developed a Local Compliance Plan for the implementation of State Regulations for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). This plan contains the agency’s policies and procedures regarding storage, disclosure to third parties, retention and destruction of personally identifiable information and the agency’s assurances that services are provided in compliance with the General Education Provision Act (GEPA). This plan may be reviewed during the hours of 8:00 – 4:00 on Monday – Friday by contacting Dr. Kayce Knaup, Director of Student Services 417-759-2555 ext 213.

Additional Links: Procedural safeguardsParent Bill of Rights