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HELP FOR SCHOOL AGED
STUDENTS LEFT HOMELESS BY HURRICANE KATRINA
Well over 200,000 school age children have been left homeless
by hurricane Katrina. Whether these children are living in the homes
of friends and relatives, or in temporary housing at hotels, motels
or military bases, the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act requires
that all school districts make special accommodations to ensure
access to school for children whose families are "homeless."
IDEA 04 requires school districts to identify, evaluate and provide
services to all homeless children with disabilities.
The No Child Left Behind Act allows the waiver of some of its
requirements due to "exceptional or uncontrollable circumstances,
such as a natural disaster". On September 7, Secretary of Education
Margaret Spellings sent a letter to the Chief State School Officers
promising to "consider promptly requests for waivers /of NCLB
requirements/ including, among other things, waivers of maintenance-of-effort
" and "highly qualified teachers". The letter also
promised help in the transfer of federal funds to districts in other
States that are serving displaced students and the use of FEMA funds
for temporary educational facilities, such as portable classrooms
and student transportation costs. (http://www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/guid/secletter/050907.htm)
The letter also announced the establishment of a Hurricane Help
for Schools website aimed at getting supplies to schools serving
students affected by Katrina. On one part of the web site, schools
are able to post their contact information and the supplies the
students need. Companies and organizations are able to view these
needs and contact the schools to meet them, or, on another part
of the site, they may post what supplies or resources they can offer.
(http://www.ed.gov/Katrina/)
If you know of a school that is denying special education services
to a student with an active IEP who has been affected by Katrina,
please share that complaint with OSEP by calling M-F: 9am - 5pm,
1-800-USA-LEARN (1-800-872-5372); English and Spanish available;
TTY for hearing impaired 1-800-437-0833; or, e-mail education@custhelp.com.
The Texas Commissioner of Education sent a letter to school districts
and charter schools containing the following very specific information.
- A district with a significant influx of students due to the
hurricane may obtain a waiver of 22-to-1 student/teacher ratio
requirements by notifying the agency of the need.
- A district with a significant influx of students due to the
hurricane may update its enrollment for textbook ordering purposes.
- A district with a significant influx of students due to the
hurricane may increase its entitlement under the federal free
and reduced-price lunch program automatically to the extent students
qualify as homeless.
- A district with a significant influx of students (more than
50) due to the hurricane may notify the Office of State Funding
of the enrollment increase and have state aid increased appropriately
from the Foundation School Program before settle-up.
- Normal immunization requirements for attending school or child-care
facilities in Texas are being temporarily waived for children
displaced by hurricane Katrina.
- Districts should document information on students from Louisiana
and Mississippi who have enrolled as a result of the hurricane
so that the state can work with counterparts in those states to
facilitate the transfer of records.
- Districts should keep track of expenditures made to serve these
students.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency may be authorized to reimburse
some or all of those expenditures.
- Districts are reminded that federal law prohibits segregating
homeless students from the general population.
The National Center on Learning Disabilities offers information
on the basic educational rights of students affected by Katrina;
tips on accessing continued special education services in a new
school setting and where to find additional resources. (http://www.LD.org/Katrina)
The Council of Parent Advocates and Attorneys website gives guidance
on where to go if problems arise in trying to get services for homeless
students with disabilities. (http://www.copaa.org/news/hurricane.html)
The Library of Congress National Library Service for the Blind
and Physically Handicapped (NLS), which provides eligible students,
including students with a medically certified reading disability,
asks hosts of eligible individuals to call 1-888-NLS-READ (1-888-657-7323)
or go to http://www.loc.gov/nls/eligible.html
for enrollment information and a directory of cooperating local
libraries participating in the Talking Books program.
HELP FOR STUDENTS FROM COLLEGES
AFFECTED BY HURRICANE KATRINA
The Department of Education has encouraged colleges and universities
to admit students from affected institutions in a manner that permits
them to receive federal student aid (http://ifap.ed.gov/eannouncements/katrina.html).
NAICU, The National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities,
has posted a Katrina Aftermath College Resource Center A Compilation
of Initiatives Undertaken by America's Private Colleges and Universities
to Aid the Victims of Hurricane Katrina (http://www.naicu.edu).
AHEAD (Association on Higher Education and Disability) has set up
a special resource, S.O.S: Serve Our Students: A Response to Hurricane
Katrina to help students with disabilities adjust to new campus
communities, (www.ahead.org/resources.)
Congress is not far behind. The House of Representatives passed
The Pell Grant Hurricane and Disaster Relief Act (H.R. 3169) and
The Student Grant Hurricane Aid Disaster Relief Act (HR 3668) both
of which would waive grant repayment requirements for students forced
to withdraw from college because of a natural disaster.
MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR
PEOPLE AFFECTED BY HURRICANE KATRINA
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of
the Department of Health and Human Services has set up a toll free
hotline for people in crisis in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
By dialing 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255), callers will be connected
to one of the 110 certified crisis centers to talk to a trained
worker who will listen to and assist callers in getting the mental
health help they need. People will be provided with immediate access
to local resources, referrals and expertise."
LEGISLATION
It is hard to predict what action Congress will take on pending
legislation as it tries to deal with the Katrina crisis.
On July 22, the House Education and the Workforce Committee passed
its version of THE REAUTHORIZATION OF THE HIGHER EDUCATION ACT (HR
609). The full House was expected to consider the bill in September.
The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions expected to introduce
its bill in September.
On September 9 the House Committee on the Judiciary passed THE
SEX OFFENDER REGISTRATION AND NOTIFICATION ACT (H.R. 3132) which
requires that every jurisdiction maintain a jurisdiction-wide sex
offender registry. Offenders, including juveniles, are to register
in each jurisdiction where the offender resides, is employed or
is a student. The contents of the registry are to be public; to
be updated by the offender upon change of residence, employment
or student status; to be verified by the offender every six months;
and the information to be disseminated to assure its availability
to schools, employers, housing agencies, volunteer organizations,
and social service entities Its scope is such that a young adolescent,
who was adjudicated a delinquent for non-violent sexual contact
with playmate, would face what amounts to a life sentence of the
most degrading public humiliation. The bill is scheduled for floor
action the week of September 12.
FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
- Susan K. Sclafani, the director of the U.S. Department of Education's
vocational education program, who won the respect of many career-oriented
school officials despite pressing them to improve their academic
programs, announced her resignation effective September 6. Beto
Gonzalez, who was hired as a top deputy to Ms. Sclafani earlier
in August, will serve on an interim basis. Mr. Gonzalez, a former
college dean, most recently served as a public affairs official
in the U.S. Department of Labor.
- Guidance on Alternate Achievement Standards for NCLB The Department
of Education has released "Alternate Achievement Standards
for Students with the Most Significant Cognitive Disabilities
- Non-Regulatory Guidance" regarding the use and development
of alternate achievement standards for students with the most
significant cognitive disabilities. To read the full document,
click on the following link http://www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/guid/altguidance.pdf
- The 25th Annual Report to Congress on IDEA This two-volume
publication from the U.S. Department of Education reports the
results of a national assessment of activities carried out under
the reauthorized IDEA 1997. It discusses student performance results,
student characteristics, and some of the programs and services
available within schools for children with disabilities and their
families. Free copies available by request from ED Pubs. https://www.edpubs.org/webstore/
- The Department's Institute of Education Sciences (IES) has
created a new listserve. Subscribers interested in education research,
evaluation, and statistics will automatically receive periodic
notification of information available on the IES web site. The
listserve will focus on such topics as funding, recent publications,
and facts and figures from the well-known National Center for
Education Statistics (NCES). For more information, go to http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ies/signupform.html
- The National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER),
one of four centers within the Institute of Education Sciences,
supports a comprehensive research program to promote the highest
quality and rigor in research on special education and related
services, and to address the full range of issues facing children
with disabilities, parents of children with disabilities, school
personnel, and others. The authorization for NCSER occurred on
December 3, 2004, with the President's signing of the reauthorization
of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
The new law transferred the responsibilities for research in special
education within the U.S. Department of Education from the Office
of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services to the Institute
of Education Sciences. Information on the FY 2006 special education
research competitions in available on the Institute's funding
page http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ies/programs.html.
- The Civil Rights of Students with Hidden Disabilities Under
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 The U.S. Department
of Education has a pamphlet examining the civil rights of students
with hidden disabilities under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation
Act. The pamphlet examines issues such as disabilities covered
under Section 504, the responsibilities of Department of Education
recipients in preschool, elementary, secondary and adult education,
and how the needs of students with disabilities can be addressed.
While this pamphlet came out a few years ago, it is still relevant
today, especially with the new school year starting all across
the country. To read the pamphlet on the Department of Education
website, go to www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/hq5269.html.
STATE LEGISLATION
The California Legislature passed a bill that would exempt many
special education students who are on track to graduate from meeting
the state's graduation exam requirement. Senate Bill 586 would codify
a legal settlement reached last month by the state and disability
rights advocates who sought to halt the graduation exam requirement
for special education students in the class of 2006. Because the
exemption would apply to students with disabilities in the classes
of 2006 and 2007, State Schools chief Jack O'Connell says the bill
goes beyond the settlement terms. He's recommending that the Governor
veto the bill. If the bill does not become law by Oct. 9, the advocates
and O'Connell will go back to court.
LDA News from Washington is a periodic publication of The
Learning Disabilities Assocation of America, Inc., 4156 Library
Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15234-1349, Phone: 412.341.1515, Fax: 412.344.0224
This is a bulletin containing news of interest to the volunteer
and administrative leadership of LDA National and its State and
Local Affiliates. Written by LDA's Washington Representative, Justine
Maloney; Kathy Lawson, Editor. LDA members wishing to be
added to the email list may contact Kathy Lawson, at klawson@ldaamerica.org.
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