July Newsletter

Implementing RtI: Lessons from the Minneapolis Public Schools' Problem-Solving Model
The Access Center’s Information Sharing Community participated in a Webinar on June 20, 2006 in which representatives from Minneapolis Public Schools shared information about their problem-solving model, which is very similar to the response-to-intervention approach (RtI) authorized under IDEA 2004. Minneapolis’ approach involves documenting student responses to interventions and referring children for special education evaluation when satisfactory progress is not made. We invite you to view the PowerPoint slides from the Webinar and listen to a recording from the event.

The Access Center has been collaborating with ERIE 1 BOCES (Board of Cooperative Educational Services) in western New York State since October, 2005. Currently, the Access Center is supporting the BOCES by providing a series of train-the-trainer events for local technical assistance providers, administrators, and school and district teams. These train-the-trainers events prepare participants to provide professional development, in a variety of ways, to their districts and schools. The first training event was held in May, 2006 and was designed using the Access Center's professional development module, Enhancing Your Instructional Skills through Differentiated Instruction. Additional training sessions are planned for the 2006-07 school year.

National School Reform Center Releases School Reform Checklist  
Access Center Collaborates with OESE General Education School Improvement Center to Develop Product Regarding Students with Disabilities 
The Comprehensive School Reform Quality (CSRQ) Center has issued a considerations checklist called "Questions That Educators Can Ask About the Participation of Students With Disabilities in School Reform and Improvement Models.”  The checklist can be used by educators to assess the capacity of school reform and improvement models to address the needs of students with disabilities.

NICHCY’s Connections…to Literacy
Are you a parent or educator looking for resources on literacy?  Look no further than the National Dissemination Center for Students with Disabilities’ NICHCY’s Connections…to Literacy webpage for resources on literacy for all children. Topics of interest include: Research Basics, NCLB and Reading, Teaching Reading--Is It Rocket Science?, Beginning Reading Instruction, Reading with Older Children, Don’t-Miss Resources, Literacy and Children with Disabilities, and Reading and English Language Learners.

CEC to Unveil New Assistive Technology Tool
On August 2, 2006, the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) will be hosting an event at the National Press Club in Washington D.C. to unveil the Assistive Technology Planner From IEP Consideration to Classroom Implementation. The Planner was created by the National Assistive Technology Research Institute (NATRI) under an OSEP grant, and will be distributed through CEC.  For more information, or to purchase the Assistive Technology Planner, please call CEC at 1-888-CEC-SPED (232-7733).

ED Issues Final Regulations for IDEA Part D – Personnel Development
The U.S. Department of Education has released final regulations relating to service obligations under IDEA Part D - Personnel Development to Improve the Services and Results for Children with Disabilities program. The final regulations went into effect on July 5, 2006. Major changes from the proposed regulations include the expansion of eligible employment options for scholars, and the number of additional years allowed to fulfill a scholar’s service obligation has been increased from three to five years.

House to Hold Hearing on Impact of NCLB on Students with Disabilities
On Wednesday, July 12 the House Education and the Workforce Committee will hold the next in a series of hearings on various aspects of the No Child Left Behind Act. This hearing will focus on limited English proficient students and students with disabilities.

NCLB Commission Holds Roundtable to Discuss Law’s Impact on Rural Schools
On June 28th, the Commission on No Child Left Behind – co-chaired by former Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson and former Georgia Governor Roy Barnes – held a roundtable discussion to discuss the effects of NCLB on schools in rural communities.   The discussion centered on how rural schools can recruit and retain highly qualified teachers, how best to assess students and ensure accountability for student achievement, and how supplemental services and public school choice are being provided in rural areas.  The Commission will continue its summer roundtable series on Thursday, July 20th, with a discussion on the impact of NCLB on early childhood education.