Schools and school districts are required to provide a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) consis­tent with the need to protect the health and safety of students with disabilities and those providing special education and services. The School Reopening Plan provides for continuity of learning through both in-person and remote instruction. Students with Disabilities will have access daily to IEP mandated programs and services in both settings. Special education teachers, Speech Pathologists, Occupational Therapists and Physical Therapists will provide real-time, teacher facilitated learning to their students, in accordance with IEPs.

The decision whether instruction will take place in-person or remotely will be determined by COVID-19 rates and mandated by Executive Order. The District will strictly adhere to Department of Health (DOH) and Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines to ensure the health and safety of students with disabilities and those providing special education and services.

Special education programs will be provided in accordance with IEP/504 plans. Special education teachers and related service providers will document programs and services offered by taking attendance daily. Special educators will continue to maintain close contact with parents of their students via email, phone calls, and through Google Suite.

Communication with parents will be provided in their preferred language or mode of communication. The district website is translatable into multiple languages.

Committee on Special Education (CSE)/Committee on Preschool Special Education (CPSE) chairpersons use in-person translators for CSE/CPSE meetings when available. Chairpersons will access Propio Language Services for over the phone interpreting if needed.

Parents are provided Prior Written Notice (PWN) following CSE meetings. The PWN indicates the records that were used to determine eligibility, as well as programs, services, accommodations, and modifications.

It is important to engage parents in meaningful dialogue regarding the provision of ser­vices to their child. Following the school closures due to COVID-19, Committees on Preschool Special Education and Committees on Special Education will need to consider newly identified needs when determining the appropriate special programs and services to be recommended for the 2020-21 school year. Special educators and related service providers will monitor student progress through data collection, observation, and performance on specific IEP goals in order to determine progress or regression. This information will be shared with parents via conference, either in person or over the phone, team meetings, or email.

Committees may consider some or all of the following questions in their decision-making process (Adapted, from LRP Publications, “Serving a student after a COVID-19-related school closure: questions the individualized education program (IEP) team should ask,” March 24, 2020):

• How long was the student's school closed?

• Was the student provided instruction or services via an alternative method (e.g. online math instruction, online speech therapy, or instruction provided telephonically) during the closure? To what extent?

• Were alternative methods of instruction (continuity of learning) and services provided to the student beneficial for the student? Was the student engaged and able to access the instruction and services?

• Is there clear documentation of the amount of instruction and services the student was provided during the closure (including dates, times, and duration)? If so, what amount of instruction and services did the student receive?

• Have there been changes in the student’s educational progress and achievement, including progress toward meeting his/her IEP goals, and ability to participate in the general education curriculum? What are those changes?

• Are there indications that the student regressed during the closure? Has the student lost any specific skills?

• Is there a possibility that the student will require extended school year services due to regression?

• Did school closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic result in any new needs for the student (e.g. emotional, medical, academic) such that the student should be provided with additional special education or related services or be reevaluated?

Utilizing the information derived from these questions, the 2020-21 school year recommendations for appropriate special education programs and services for each student with a disability must be informed by the following Committee considerations:

• Extended School Year (ESY) Services;

• Revisions to the IEP to ensure the continued provision of a free appropriate public education (FAPE) due to the student’s changing needs; and

• Compensatory Services.

It was necessary to pause some evaluations due to the COVID-19 mandatory closure. Special Education eligibility determinations could not be made because some essential assessments required administration in a face-to-face setting. Executive Order 202.37 allowed for the resumption of in-person evaluations in July and August. Evaluations are in-process if parents made their child available. Evaluations will continue during the school year. CSE/SCSE will determine eligibility for services under Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

Chapter 408 Regulations require that each staff member who is responsible for the implementation of a student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) have access to and review a copy of the student’s IEP. To facilitate this process, all teachers have access to their students’ IEP/504 plans through their class roster on Infinite Campus. All general education teachers, special education teachers, related service providers, teaching assistants, and special education aides are required to acknowledge that they have reviewed each of their student’s IEP/504 plan.