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Check out National PTA's Special Education
Listserv
CLICK HERE |
SEPTA
Special Education
Parent Teacher
Association
Quick Links:
ANNOUNCEMENT: November 15, 2008, the Connecticut
Commission on Culture and Tourism and the Young Audiences Arts for Learning is
sponsoring a statewide forum on "Careers in the Arts for People with
Disabilities". They are inviting artists with disabilities and artists who are
interested in working with artists with disabilities to participate.
CLICK HERE
for more information and the "call for artists".
NOTE:
For questions with regards to forming a SEPTA or joining a
SEPTA please contact Melissa Johnson, CT PTA President, at
203-281-6617 or email
Connecticut.pta@snet.net |
WHAT IS SEPTA?
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SEPTA is a PTA within
a school district. SEPTA brings together people who are interested in special
education and children with special needs. |
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SEPTA supports,
strengthens and promotes the welfare of children with special needs. |
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SEPTA promotes an
understanding of special education and strives to enrich the lives of children
with special needs. |
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WHAT ARE THE GOALS OF SEPTA?
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To ensure that all
children receive an education that allows them to reach their full potential. |
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To bring together
parents, families and teachers of children with special needs in order to share
their experiences. |
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To educate parents
about special education, including the identification and placement procedures
for children with special needs. |
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To inform
legislators, school boards, and the community about the importance of special
education programs. |
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To improve the lives
of children by providing cultural, social and physical enrichment. |
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To advocate for
children with special needs and their right to a free and appropriate public
education in the least restrictive environment. |
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WHO ARE SEPTA MEMBERS?
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Anyone that has an
interest in the welfare of children with special needs. |
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Parents, families,
teachers, school administrators, students, friends. |
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Membership is open to
all. |
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HOW CAN YOU SUPPORT SEPTA?
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Join a SEPTA |
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Attend meetings |
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Participate in
programs |
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Volunteer your time |
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GET INVOLVED! |
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KNOW YOUR RIGHTS
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If you suspect your
child has a disability that interferes with learning, you can ask to have your
child tested by your school district at no cost to you. You can do this even if
your child does not attend public school. |
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You can see your
child’s school records and get a copy of the school records at no cost to you.
If your child’s school records contain incorrect or misleading information, you
can ask to have the information corrected. |
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When your child is
evaluated for special education, the school must explain the tests your child
has been given. If you disagree with the school’s evaluation, you can ask for
additional testing or an independent evaluation at no cost to you. |
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You must be treated
as a full and equal member of your child’s Planning and Placement Team (PPT).
You should be included in every decision about your child’s special education.
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If you disagree with
decisions about your child’s special education, you have many rights, including
the right to mediation and due process. |
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KNOWLEDGE IS
POWER! |
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| SEPTAs IN CONNECTICUT We are fortunate to have several SEPTAs organized in
Connecticut. Below we've provided some basic contact information. If
you need more information regarding any of these organizations,
contact the CT PTA office. |
NOTE:
For questions with regards to forming a SEPTA or joining a
SEPTA please contact Melissa Johnson, CT PTA President, at
203-281-6617 or email
Connecticut.pta@snet.net |
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OTHER RESOURCES
There are many resources available to parents of special
needs children. Here are just a few:
AUTISM SOCIETY OF AMERICA
800-3AUTISM
AUTISM SOCIETY OF CT (ASCONN)
P.O. Box 1404
Guilford, CT 06437
888-453-4975
www.autismsocietyofct.org
CONNECTICUT ASSOCIATION FOR CHILDREN WITH LEARNING
DISABILITIES (CACLD)
25 Van Zant Street, Suite 15-5
East Norwalk, CT 06855
203-838-5010
CONNECTICUT PARENT ADVOCACY CENTER (CPAC)
338 Main Street
Niantic, CT 06357
800-445-2722
Council for
Exceptional Children
Phone: (888) CEC-SPED or (703) 620-3660
Fax: (703) 264-9494 -
http://www.cec.sped.org
CREC HEARING IMPAIRED PROGRAM
129 Hartford Avenue
Wethersfield, CT 06109
860-529-4260
LEARNING DISABILITIES ASSOCIATION OF CONNECTICUT
999 Asylum Avenue
Hartford, CT 06105
860-560-1711
National
Association of State Directors of Special Education, Inc. (NASDSE)
http://www.nasdse.org/home.htm
NATIONAL INFORMATION CENTER FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH WITH
DISABILITIES
800-695-0285
SPECIAL EDUCATION RESOURCE CENTER (SERC)
25 Industrial Park Road
Middletown, CT 06457-1502
860-632-1485
800-842-8678
Yale Academic Skills Clinic
(Assessment clinic for children and youth with individual learning needs)
Yale Child Study Center
230 South Frontage Road
New Haven, CT. 06520
(Locations in New Haven and Greenwich)
To schedule an appointment: 203-785-4239
For more information:
Consult their brochure or contact Tina
Newman
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
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Frequently Asked
Questions regarding SEPTAs... CLICK HERE
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Help for Parents
Dealing with Bullying Situations
CLICK
HERE
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The National PTA
position statement, Education of Children with Special Needs, contains
more useful information for parents with children with special needs...
CLICK HERE
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For more information
on How to Advocate for Your Special Needs Child,
CLICK HERE
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To see how two PTAs
provided resources for students with special needs and their families,
CLICK HERE
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Specific consultation on IDEA issues...
CLICK HERE |
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Textbooks Go
Digital for Students with Special Needs - Students with visual impairments
or severe learning disabilities will have unprecedented access to the contents
of textbooks with the nationwide release on September 3, 2002 of digitally
recorded textbooks on CD from Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic...
CLICK HERE
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Views from Parents about Special Ed
- The stigma once attached to children in special education
is disappearing from America's public schools, according to a Public
Agenda survey of their parents released 6/19/02. But as Congress
prepares to take up legislation governing special education in the
public schools, many parents say getting information about services
for their children is often a struggle...
CLICK HERE
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National PTA Launches Special Education Listserv -
Realizing that PTA members with children with disabilities are often
geographically dispersed and, in some cases, isolated from other parents facing
similar issues, National PTA has created a listserv to facilitate the sharing of
information and resources. The listserv also will provide National PTA a public
forum to keep PTA members informed on issues affecting students with
disabilities and will help National PTA staff effectively respond to issues
facing this segment of our membership. This listserv is the most recent
development in local and National PTA efforts to provide support to families of
children with disabilities. There are 172 local PTAs dedicated to special
education issues nationwide, including units in California, Connecticut,
Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina,
Oregon, and Texas. To join the listserv, go to
www.pta.org/specialed and fill out
the required fields. If you have any questions regarding this listserv, contact
Melina Wright, National PTA's federal lobbyist on disability issues, at
mwright@pta.org, or Shahenaz Chhipa, the
listserv administrator, at schhipa@pta.org.
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Resources for
Parents of Children with Disabilities - Parents of children with
disabilities will want to become familiar with their children's education
rights, in particular, the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA). But where
can parents turn for accurate and easy-to-understand resources?
National PTA has partnered with the Family and Advocates Partnership for
Education (FAPE) to raise awareness of free resources available to parents of
children with disabilities. Here are just a few FAPE resources available to
administrators, service providers, and parents:
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Discover IDEA:
Supporting Achievement for Children with Disabilities (a brochure and a video
available in English and Spanish offering an overview of IDEA and a listing of
related resources)
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Discover IDEA CD 2002
(searchable format CD-ROM)
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Possibilities: A
Financial Resource Book for Parents of Children with Disabilities
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Order these
publications by calling FAPE toll-free at (888) 248-0822. To
learn about other IDEA resources, call FAPE or
CLICK HERE
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For more information on SEPTAs,
feel free to contact the CT PTA State Office...
CLICK HERE
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