Special Education
Special Education
It is with belief and conviction that all students are capable of achieving their fullest potential. We, as a department, through perseverance and dedication, fully commit ourselves to providing the tools, knowledge, and compassion to assist these young minds in realizing their potential to the fullest extent.
For additional details, feel free to reach out to the Special Education Office at
956-323-5570.
Options & requirements for providing assistance to students:
If a child is experiencing learning difficulties, please contact your child’s principal to learn about the district’s overall general education referral or screening system for support services.
At any time, a parent is entitled to request an evaluation for special education services.
Please contact your campus principal regarding options for a child experiencing learning difficulties or a referral for evaluation for special education. You may also call Mission CISD Special Education office at 956-323-5570.
Who is eligible for special education?
To be eligible for special education services, students must meet certain eligibility requirements. If they also demonstrate an educational need, students may be eligible as having or being a student with autism, deaf/hard of hearing, deaf-blindness, emotional disturbance, intellectual disability, multiple disabilities, noncategorical early childhood, orthopedic impairment, other health impairment, specific learning disability, speech impairment, traumatic brain injury, or visual impairment.
Students who are deaf or hard of hearing may receive instruction in the Regional DaySchool Program for the Deaf (RDSPD) classrooms located in McAllen, inclusive general education classrooms with interpreters and/or their RDSPD teacher, or fully mainstreamed with an interpreter. Other students may receive itinerant support services in their community school.
Students ages 3 or 4 may receive special education instruction in a fully mainstreamed general education classroom, or access early childhood services for students ages 3-5 in a self-contained classroom.
Students who are eligible for special education may also qualify for related services that support access to on-grade-level TEKS instruction, such as occupational therapy, speech therapy, physical therapy, and counseling.
Post-secondary students who have completed four years of high school, and are still in need of services for functional academics, behaviors, or independence, may continue receiving services at the high school or in the community. All Services provided and placement are based on the individual needs of the student as determined by the ARD committee.
Section 504
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 is a civil rights law designed to eliminate discrimination on the basis of disability in any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance from the U.S. Department of Education (ED).
Parents seeking further information on Section 504 and/or dyslexia should contact the campus Section 504 Coordinator or the school district Section 504 Coordinator at 956-323-5626.
Dyslexia
According to the International Dyslexia Association, Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that is neurological in origin. It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities.
Parents seeking further information on Section 504 and/or dyslexia should contact the campus Section 504 Coordinator or the school district Section 504 Coordinator at 956-323-5626.