SPECIAL EDUCATION

For further information regarding Child Find or if and need special education and/or related services please contact:

EC Director: Beverly Sipe

704-896-9500 (phone) 833-471-3599 (fax)

Child Find
What is Project Child Find?
An effort coordinated by your local school system and the Exceptional Children Division, State Department of Public Instruction, to:
Locate and identify children and youth ages birth through 21 with disabilities who are in need of special education and related services.
Inform parents and/or guardians of the services available from their local school system and other state and community agencies.

Who Are the Children?
Children and youth who have been diagnosed or are suspected to have intellectual, physical or emotional disabilities and are unable to benefit from a regular school program without special assistance.

What Help Is Available?
A complete evaluation and if appropriate
An Individual Education Program for children with a disability beginning age three.
An Individual Family Service Plan for each child with a disability birth through 2 or
A referral to other agencies when needed.

EC Parents' Rights Handbook
This handbook is designed to support families with the understanding of the rights and responsibilities specific to the special education process. Acronyms and terms often used in special education and resources can be found in the appendices. If, at any time, you suspect your student may have a disability and is in need of special education and/or related services, you may request an evaluation, in writing, to your student’s school principal, teacher, or NC DPI.

North Carolina Department of Public Instruction Exceptional Children Division
The mission of the Exceptional Children Division is to ensure that students with disabilities develop intellectually, physically, emotionally, and vocationally through the provision of an appropriate individualized program in the least restrictive environment.

Multi-Tiered System of Support for Families
What is NC MTSS?
Family engagement within an MTSS is defined as the active and meaningful partnerships that educators build and maintain with students’ families for the purpose of supporting student learning. It embodies the idea that all parties are equally invested in the student’s educational experience and all parties bring knowledge and skills of equal value to the table to work together.
This linked infographic is intended to support NC families in understanding what NC educators are referring to when they are talking about an MTSS.
What is "support"?
NC schools that are implementing an MTSS may talk about support for students. To further define that support, NC organizes these supports around the instruction, the curriculum, and the environment. This linked infographic is intended to promote understanding and conversations around how school teams are providing these supports to all, some, and a few students based on needs.

Section 504 at LCA
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 is a national law that protects qualified individuals from discrimination based on their disability. The nondiscrimination requirements of the law apply to employers and organizations that receive financial assistance from any Federal department or agency. It is a civil rights legislation for persons with disabilities, designed to prevent any form of discrimination based on disabilities, who are otherwise qualified or protected.
A Section 504 Plan is a legal document falling under the provisions of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. It is designed to plan a program of instructional services to assist students with special needs who are in a regular education setting. A 504 Plan is not an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) as is required for exceptional students. However, a student moving from an exceptional children's program to a regular education placement could be placed under a 504 Plan.

504 Parents' Rights