Special Education Services
Overview
The Illinois State Board of Education partners with school districts to provide programs and services for students with specialized educational needs.
Special Education Services assures that these programs and services meet state and federal requirements. This involves both compliance and technical assistance functions. Compliance functions include monitoring least restrictive environment compliance, administering due process system, providing mediation services, conducting compliant investigations, approving policies and procedures, conducting focused and comprehensive reviews and approving nonpublic special education facilities. Technical assistance functions involve providing information and guidance on promising practices in educating students with disabilities, including the operation of numerous statewide training and technical assistance initiatives, administering the comprehensive system of personnel development for special education and management of grant programs to schools for special education service delivery.
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What's New
- Explanation of Procedural Safeguards
- AVISO DE GARANTÍAS DE PROCEDIMIENTO PARA LOS PADRES O TUTORES DE ESTUDIANTES CON DISCAPACIDADES (A partir de enero de 2008)
Topics A-Z. An alphabetical listing
of Topics AZ generated from Special Education Services.
Resources for Administrators. Includes information on funding for special education programs,
Least Restrictive Environment, Corey H. news and updates, school
district policies, forms for special education, due process and
a listing of Directors of Special Education.
Resources for Teachers. Information
on the Individualized Education Program, special education certification
structure, regional safe schools programs, transition services,
class size/age range requirements, and other helpful resources.
Resources for Parents. Information
for parents on topics including early childhood special education,
Project CHOICES, parent training, and links to the document A Parent’s
Guide – The Educational Rights of Students with Disabilities
in English and Spanish.
Special Education Categories. The Special Education Categories site includes information,
research, resources, and best practices on the following program
areas: Deaf-Blindness, Deafness, Emotional Disturbance, Hearing
Impairment, Mental Retardation, Multiple Disabilities, Orthopedic
Impairment, Other Health Impairment, Specific Learning Disability,
Speech/Language Impairment, Speech/Language Pathology Services,
Traumatic Brain Injury, and Visual Impairment.
Grant Information
- Illinois Advisory Board for Services for Persons Who are Deaf-Blind (IABDB) – IABDB is committed to partnering with key stakeholders to impact positive change for all individuals who are deaf-blind and ensure they are provided equal access to resources and opportunities to lead fulfilling lives.
- Assistive Technology. Children with disabilities sometimes need and are entitled to special equipment and services to ensure that they have access to a free and appropriate education (FAPE).
- Illinois ASPIRE. Funded by a five-year (2005-2010) State Personnel Development Grant under Part D of IDEA 2004, Illinois ASPIRE (Alliance for School-based Problem-solving and Intervention Resources in Education) will establish and implement a coordinated, regionalized system of personnel development that will increase the capacity of school systems to provide early intervening services, aligned with the general education curriculum, to at-risk students and students with disabilities.
- Illinois Service Resource Center. The Illinois Service Resource Center is the coordination center for a wide variety of services tailored specifically for children who are deaf or hard of hearing and exhibit behavioral, emotional or mental health challenges.
- Positive Behavior Intervention & Supports. PBIS is a proactive systems approach for creating and maintaining safe and effective learning environments in schools. PBIS in Illinois focuses on data-based decision-making around discipline and academics at school, district, regional and state levels, integrating related school improvement initiatives and structures such as 21st Century, Reading First, No Child Left Behind, and Safe Schools, and building skills and therefore capacity of school-based leadership teams through coaching and technical assistance.
- Project CHOICES. The purpose of CHOICES/Early CHOICES is to increase the capacities of school districts and educational personnel to educate and provide supports and services to children and youth with disabilities in the preschool, school, and community environments in which they would participate if not identified as having a disability”
- Illinois Autism Training and Technical Assistance Project. IATTAP focuses on educating and supporting children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and their families by building local capacity to establish and implement effective educational supports and services in the least restrictive environment for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders.
- Parent and Educator Partnership. This initiative provides support to parents of children with disabilities to build equal partnerships with the educators who serve their children. The primary goal of this initiative is to move families and educators to a relationship that increases partnership to meet the needs of the children who are their common focus.
- Project Reach. Project Reach provides technical assistance, information, and training to address the early intervention, special education, related services, and transitional services needs of children with deaf-blindness and enhance state capacity to improve services and outcomes for children and their families.
- Secondary Transition. This web page provides access to a great variety of resources, tools and information related to secondary transition including, but not limited to: an age-appropriate transition assessment, measurable post-school goals, transition plan development, and linkages to web resources that cover a range of topics related to secondary transition. The Transition Outreach Training for Adult Living (TOTAL) Project training modules and resources can also be accessed here.
Complaint Investigation. If informal talks with the school personnel do not resolve the conflict
and a parent/advocate believes that a more formalized action is
necessary, he/she may submit a signed, written complaint to the
Illinois State Board of Education.
Mediation. Illinois
mediation service, designed as an alternative to the due process
hearing, is a means of resolving disagreements regarding the appropriateness
of special education and related services.
Advisory Boards/Councils
- Illinois Interagency Coordinating Council. The Illinois Interagency Coordinating Council (ICC) was established in 1990 by the Interagency Coordinating Council Act, 20 ILCS 3970 to facilitate collaboration among state agencies and improve outcomes for youth with disabilities.
- Illinois Purchase Care Review Board. The purpose of the Illinois Purchased Care Review Board is to review and approve or disapprove the costs and set rates for nonpublic facilities.
- Illinois State Advisory Council on the Education of Children with Disabilities (ISAC). The role of the Illinois State Advisory Council on the Education of Children with Disabilities is to be a proactive body, advising the Governor, Legislature and the State Board of Education on current issues relating to the education of children and youth with disabilities. It is also the responsibility of this Council to encourage new strategies and technologies, while advocating high standards of excellence throughout Illinois.
