Greetings!

Online Trainings offered through MPACT

 MPACT Parent Mentor Program

MPACT Parent Mentors are available to offer support and guidance to parents of children with disabilities throughout the IEP process.  Parent Mentors are volunteers who receive 24 hours of initial training, ongoing monthly training, and technical assistance from MPACT staff with regard to special education law, the IEP process, conflict resolution, and effective communication.  Their goal is to help parents build a collaborative partnership with the school district so their child may receive an appropriate education.  To view the list of current MPACT Parent Mentors, go to http://ptimpact.org/Volunteer/MentorList.aspx.

If your school district has had a MPACT Parent Mentor in attendance at an IEP meeting, please take a moment to complete a brief online survey located at http://ptimpact.org/Surveys.aspx if you have not already done so.  A separate survey should be completed for each mentor who has provided services to parents in your district.  These surveys assist MPACT and DESE with identifying and addressing areas of success and improvement with the Parent Mentor Program.

For more information about MPACT or if you have questions regarding the status of a Parent Mentor, please contact MPACT by telephone at (800) 743-7634 or by e-mail at info@ptimpact.org.    You can also view the MPACT website at http://www.ptimpact.org.

Educational Surrogate Training

Easter Seals is trying to spread the word about the underidentification of young children who have developmental delays.

The organization, which is pushing for a $100 million increase to the federal budget for services to young children with disabilities, is pushing for better detection of developmental delays in infants and toddlers. The current budget is about $440 million. President Obama has proposed a $20 million increase.

Easter Seals says that each year there are about 5 million children at risk for developmental delays, but only about 1 million actually get early intervention services. Last month, Easter Seals launched a new questionnaire for parents that gives them guidance about whether, based on their answers, they should talk to their children's doctors. The new Ages & Stages Questionnaire can also be mailed upon request to parents and is available in Spanish.

The free screening tool can be used repeatedly. While considered a precise gauge, "it's designed so you don't have to have a Ph.D. in early childhood education to fill it out," said Patricia Wright, the national director of Easter Seals' autism arm.

While states are tasked with finding and serving children with disabilities before kindergarten, "it's really up to parents" to identify possible delays, the effects of which may be something that can be eliminated or diminished greatly before formal schooling begins, said Katy Neas, a senior vice president of Easter Seals.

Wright pointed to recent numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that found that 1 in 88 children age 8 and younger have autism. The CDC also found that the median age of diagnosis of some type of autism spectrum disorder was older than age 6.

"You can accurately diagnose all of those at 24 months," she said.

In the long run, Neas said, early diagnosis and intervention will reduce special education costs. Some 11 percent of children who are served in federally funded early intervention programs end up not needing special education services, she said.

Late last year President Obama and his top financial advisers were handed a blueprint for what kids at certain ages should be expected to know about money. Still a work in progress, "Money Milestones; 20 Things Kids Need to Know to Live Financially Smart Lives," has distilled thousands of pages of research into 20 simple "money milestones." The milestones are broad and simple in design. Identifying what kids should know about money, and by what age, is a critical step efforts to raise personal financial literacy rates.

Insights & Evidence is a web-based publication that presents the latest research from Search Institute on healthy children, youth, and communities in a format that is useful to community leaders and policy makers. The April 2012 issue, "In Brief: Speaking of Money: Equipping Youth and Families to Navigate Finances in Their Everyday Lives," is out just in time for National Financial Literacy Month. 

Visit the newly revamped Kids and Money section on Search Institute's parenting website.

If you have questions you would like to submit prior to the webinar, please submit them to: Donna.cash@dese.mo.gov (indicate "foster child webinar" in the subject line).  We will respond to these questions and others that are received during the webinar as time allows and will post the questions and answers on our website. 

To participate in this webinar, go to http://dese.mo.gov/webinar/Webinar-05-14-12-SE.htm.  The webinar will be recorded and posted under the Webinars - Recorded button at http://dese.mo.gov/webinar/. 

If you need an accommodation as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act to participate in this webinar, please call 573-751-5739 at least 48 hours in advance of the webinar to discuss the accommodation.

When Your Child Graduates...

When your child graduates from high school with a regular diploma or "ages out" of special education, IDEA requires the school to provide a "summary of academic achievement and functional performance."

What's the Intent of a Summary of Performance (SOP)? The Summary should contain updated information on your child's abilities and aspirations and include recommendations about ways to help meet post-secondary goals.

Finding a Good Match for the Future

Your child's IDEA rights do not follow him into college and neither will his IEP. Make sure you both know what to expect.  Help! My Son With LD Graduates! Who Will Write his 504 When he Loses his IEP?

We've put together the "best of the web" to help you make good decisions about the transition to further education.  Comparing Schools: Choosing a School That's Right for You 

Tips & Strategies for Paying for College

At Loans, Scholarships and Financial Aid for College, you'll find a comprehensive resource page about funding strategies for college. Get information about scholarships and financial aid for students with disabilities.

Standard 1: Welcoming all families into the school community-Families are active participants in the life of the school, and feel welcomed, valued, and connected to each other, to school staff, and to what students are learning and doing in class.

Standard 2: Communicating effectively-Families and school staff engage in regular, two-way, meaningful communication about student learning.

Standard 3: Supporting student success-Families and school staff continuously collaborate to support students' learning and healthy development both at home and at school, and have regular opportunities to strengthen their knowledge and skills to do so effectively.

Standard 4: Speaking up for every child-Families are empowered to be advocates for their own and other children, to ensure that students are treated fairly and have access to learning opportunities that will support their success.

Standard 5: Sharing power-Families and school staff are equal partners in decisions that affect children and families and together inform, influence, and create policies, practices, and programs.

Standard 6: Collaborating with community-Families and school staff collaborate with community members to connect students, families, and staff to expanded learning opportunities, community services, and civic participation.

CLICK HERE  to read more.