Thank you for taking the time to learn more about the Illinois Advisory Council on the Education of Children with Disabilities, or ISAC. I am honored to serve as chair of this dedicated council composed of diverse members who work on the behalf of our students with disabilities across the state. Their expertise and perspectives provide a depth of knowledge for the betterment of our students. The ISAC is statutorily created by Section 14-3.01 of the School Code of Illinois. The purpose of the Council is to: Advise the State Board of Education regarding rules and regulations relating to the education of children with disabilities and promulgated by the Board, modifications or additions to county or regional comprehensive plans, qualifications of due process hearing officers, and procedures for the conduct of due process hearings,

Advise the General Assembly, the Governor, and the State Board of Education on the unmet needs of children with disabilities,

Assist the State Board of Education in developing and reporting data and evaluations which may assist the U.S. Commissioner of Education, Comment publicly on rules and regulations proposed by the state regarding the education of children with disabilities and the procedures for distribution of funds. 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. Meetings schedules, minutes, public participation guidelines and other information can be found at

https://www.isbe.net/Pages/Illinois-State-Advisory-Council.aspx.

We welcome you to join us as we work to ensure the best

outcomes for students with disabilities in the State of Illinois!

Dr. Jennifer Naddeo, Ph.D., ISAC Chair 2017-2018

ISAC MEMBERSHIP

Chair

Dr. Jennifer Nad-deo

Vice Chair

Heath Brosseau

Angela Baronello

Dr. Beth Conran

Jeannine M. Cordero

Keith Dronen

Joanna Graham

Elizabeth Keenan

Suzanne Lee

Kimberly McClellan

Ancel Montenelli

Lauri Phillips

Serena Preston

Dianne Schultz

Diane Blair-Sherlock

Carrie Snyder

Susy Woods

Letter from the Chair

ISAC Illinois State Advisory Council

SPRING 2018

Response to Intervention (RtI) is a school wide prevention framework for improving academic and social behavior outcomes for all students. This general education initiative is intended to identify and support students who require additional supports with learning and behavioral needs. RtI is a three-tiered model of support, with student data driving the problem-solving method for decisions about student needs. The three-tiered model utilizes additional intensive instruction and interventions to determine how a student responds to additional support matched to the needs of a student. RtI begins with providing high-quality instruction and universal screening of all students in the general education classroom. School-based teams analyze student data to make instructional decisions. Struggling learners are provided quality interventions to accelerate their learning, from a tiered level of support. The additional supports and interventions are provided from a tiered model of support, with ongoing monitoring of how the student responds to the Tier 2 and if needed, Tier 3 continuum of interventions and supports. A key element linked to RtI is the problem-solving approach for making educational decisions. By utilizing the RtI problem-solving approach, instructional supports and resources can be linked to students’ educational needs. Step one represents defining the learning problem and using student data to figure out if there is a gap in a student’s learning. By screening the entire student population in the general education classroom, students at risk can be identified early and provided additional support. After identifying the problem/the gap, the next step is to collect and analyze various student data sources, for example, test scores, parent input, and achievement scores, to determine why the student is having difficulty with learning or behavioral skills. Next, a plan of improvement is developed and implemented, with the objective being to increase their rate of learning. The final element of the problem-solving approach represents on-going progress monitoring to determine if the student receives the benefit, that is, responds to the interventions and supports linked to the intervention plan. A strong home-school connection between parents and teachers only enhances a student’s ability to learn and grow. Parent involvement in the RtI process is vital, especially when a student is identified as being at risk for learning or behavioral problems. All students should have access and be taught grade level curriculum, which represents Tier I or core instruction—with an emphasis on prevention. Some students may experience problems as they try to learn grade-level content. Therefore, Tier 2 supports and interventions can be provided to the student as part of the RtI problem-solving process—these targeted supports concentrate on early intervention. If even after providing Tier 1 and Tier 2 supports, the student is not improving, more intensive supports are provided at Tier 3—with an emphasis on intensity of individualized or intensive supports. The Tier 3 supports are provided in a smaller group setting and are typically longer in duration. This three-tier model of school supports is designed to provide high-quality instruction and interventions to students who are struggling with learning goals. Educational decisions concerning the rate of learning and the level of performance are based on each student’s response to targeted learning goals. RtI has been developed for making informed decisions in both general education and special education. RtI represents a well-integrated process for identifying and supporting students. Students who do not achieve the desired level of progress in response to targeted Tier 3 supports and interventions are then referred for a comprehensive evaluation and consideration for eligibility for special education services. At any point in the RtI process, parents can request a formal evaluation to determine eligibility for special education. Moreover, the RtI process cannot be used to deny or delay a formal evaluation for special education. The RtI process best attribute is linked to the school-wide framework for efficiently allocating resources to improve student outcomes. The early identification of students requiring additional supports, in conjunction with the development and implementation of a problem-solving approach for allocating supports, monitoring how students respond to the additional supports and making informed decisions represents the cornerstone of RtI. In an RtI ap-proach, high-quality instruction/intervention is provided, learning rate over time/level of performance is monitored, and important educational decisions are made.

(RTI Resources can be found on back page)

ISAC Illinois State Advisory Council

RTI

Response to Intervention

If you think your child has a disability, early identification of the disability is critical. Unfortunately, parents’ pleas to their chil-dren’s schools are too often ignored. Districts have a legal responsibility to locate, identify, and evaluate all children with dis-abilities ages 3-21 who live in the district. This is called “child find.” Schools have a number of procedures they are supposed to follow when a parent makes a request for a special education evaluation. Below is a cheat sheet that explains these procedures and how you can hold your district accountable to them when requesting a special education evaluation for your child.

How to make a request: Submit a written request for an evaluation. Email is best but you can hand in a written request to the school’s office. (Just make sure someone in the office initials the request to confirm receipt and request a copy with the initials for your records). Requesting an evaluation verbally doesn’t count! Direct your request to the princi-pal and your school’s special education coordinator. Make sure your request includes the date and state, “I under-stand the school has 14 school days to respond.” Cite specific support that your child is struggling in school such as grades, test scores, difficulty with homework/academic tasks, behavior reports, comments from the teacher, etc. If your child has an outside provider such as a pediatrician or therapist who shares your concerns, ask them to write a letter of support, explaining their concerns for your child and affirming the need for an evaluation. Attach this letter to your request.

How the school is to respond: The school must respond to a parent’s request for an evaluation within 14 school days. If the school agrees to an evaluation, it can do so verbally. If it denies your request, it must provide notice in writing citing specific evidence that supports that an evaluation is not necessary.

Getting the parent’s input and consent: If the school agrees to an evaluation, it must determine what testing it will do and get your consent to do the testing within the 14-school-day timeline. The team must decide what domains/areas of your child’s functioning are areas of concern. This is referred to as a “domains meeting.” Schools can meet without parents to determine the specific kinds of tests it will use, but they should receive parents’ input.

The 60-school-day deadline: After receiving the parent’s signature, a district has 60 school days to complete its evaluation and hold an eligibility meeting. If there are less than 60-school-days left in the year when you make your request, the school still has to decide whether an evaluation is needed, as usual. If one is, the school is to complete the evaluation before the start of the next school year. Districts employ staff over the summer to do summer evaluations, so push back if the school says this isn’t possible or it’s too late to get an evaluation.

Look out for these common improper reasons to delay or deny an evaluation! Often a team will say it has “to collect more data” before it can agree to an evaluation. That’s what the 14 school days are for! A district is not supposed to say it needs to do RTI, MTSS, or progress monitor before it can consider an evaluation. Unfortunately, districts do this all the time. If you hear this, you can say, “The Illinois State Board of Education is clear that when a parent requests an evaluation, the district is not to cite a need to do RTI before agreeing. RTI is to be done during the 60-school-day timeline.

Consider mediation or due process: These are the two main mechanisms to challenge a district’s failure to comply with any of these procedures. Mediation is much faster and less formal, while due process is essentially a special education hearing. It can be quite lengthy and draining of resources and time. If you feel your child was improperly denied an evaluation, don’t be shy to share with the district that you’re considering mediation or due process. If your child’s evaluation was not “sufficiently comprehensive” to identify his disability or the services he requires, you can request the district pay for an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE). A district may agree or it may file for due process to defend its evaluation.

Holding your child’s school responsible to these timelines and procedures will cue the district that you are aware that you and your child have rights and of the avenues through which to enforce those rights. Being so formal with your child’s teachers and school administrators can feel awkward at first but it’s worth it if it means your child’s disability can be identified as early as possible. Also, make certain to keep copies of all documents, any emails and make a record by having everything in writing.

Author: Jackie Ross, Special Education Attorney for Equip for Equality

If you have questions, contact Equip for Equality’s Special Education Helpline for free legal advice and information at our toll-free number: 1-866-KIDS-046 (1-866-543-7046).

Equip for Equality

Advancing the human and Civil rights of people with disabilities In Illinois

Securing a Special Education Evaluation For Your Child

RTI Resources:

Illinois State Board of Education (2009). Educational rights and responsibilities: Understanding special education in Illinois. Retrieved from https://www.isbe.net/Documents/parent_guide_english.pdf Magit, E. (September 2013). Using data with ELL students within the RtI process. IAASE Fall Conference, Tinley Park, Illinois. Retrieved from http://www.iaase.org/Documents/Ctrl_Hyperlink/Session_7_Assessment_and_Progress_Monitoring_of_ELL_Students_uid9152013348582.pdf National Center for Learning Disabilities (2018). What is RtI? Retrieved from http://www.rtinetwork.org/learn/what/whatisrti

Angela Baronello Angela Baronello has

been an active part of

the dyslexia advocacy

community for many

years now. While

advocating for her own

children, she created the

Lake County Parents of

Children with Dyslexia to

support other parents who may be struggling. She's also

the co-founder of Decoding Dyslexia Illinois which

advocates for legislative change in Illinois schools. Her

work in this group lead to an appointment to the Illinois

Reading Instruction Advisory group for the Illinois State

Board of Education from 2014-2016. In an effort to cre-

ate meaningful change for students in her local schools,

Angela joined the Antioch District 34 School Board in

June 2017.

Angela received her BS in Psychology from Eastern Illinois

University and worked for Boys & Girls Clubs of America

before leaving to stay home with her three children.

NEW MEMBER SPOT LIGHT Dianne Schulz Dianne Schultz became the

President and Chief Executive

Officer of The Baby Fold on July

1, 2014. Previously, she was the

Director of Academic Services at

The Baby Fold from 1992 to

2014. She began working in the

field of special education as a

teacher in 1976, and has served

as a non-public special educa-

tion administrator since 1983. As a special education

administrator, she created the first non-public special

education high school program for youth with severe

emotional disabilities in Bloomington/Normal. While at

The Baby Fold, she has expanded the Hammitt School

non-public special education program serving students with

severe emotional disabilities, K-12+.

During her tenure at The Baby Fold, her administrative

duties have included development of specialized services

for students on the Autism Spectrum, establishing

professional development training and consultation to

public school special education programs, and developing

family outreach services to students attending public

schools. Dianne received her Master’s degree in Special

Education Administration from Illinois State University.

Additionally, Dianne has been a “parent consumer” of

special education services on behalf of her son, Zach, from

preschool through his high school graduation.