and Strategic Initiatives 2008–2009 - Laramie County School District ...

Teaching & Learning
Exceptional Children’s Programs
The primary purpose of special
education is to ensure
exceptional children
develop mentally, physically,
socially and emotionally. A range of
services and programs are provided
to students with special educational
needs, ages 5 through 21, in Laramie
County School District 1.
All students receiving special
education services are screened,
evaluated and placed according to
federal and state regulations governing
services for children with disabilities.
The Child Find program
assists in locating and identifying
children with disabilities. An individual
education plan (IEP), which
includes annual goals, instructional
objectives and evaluation criteria, is
prepared for each student according
to his or her needs. Parents participate
in developing their child’s IEP
and receive a copy of the completed
document.
Every school in the district
provides special education services
within resource rooms as well as
within regular classrooms. Some
schools also have district-wide programs.
They are as follows:
Language Labs, located at
Goins and Pioneer Park, provide diagnostic
and therapeutic services for
students who need intensive speech
and language learning assistance.
Services for students with intensive
needs due to a hearing impairment
or deafness are located at
Davis Elementary School. Students
at the secondary level or elementary
students, whose needs are less intensive,
attend their neighborhood
school and receive needed services
through a variety of service provision
options.
Programs for Adaptive Living
Skills (PALS), located at Alta Vista,
Deming, Hebard, Sunrise, Carey
and East, provide individualized
educational instruction to students
with a moderate or severe cognitive
disability.
Community Living Access
Skills (CLAS) is a transition
program for older students with
more involved disabilities. Located
at 1805 E. 19th St., it provides an
environment more age-appropriate
to that of their peers who have
graduated from high school.
Therapeutic Learning Center
(TLC) Programs, which provide
special learning opportunities for
elementary students with emotional
and behavioral challenges, are
located at Cole and Pioneer Park.
In addition, the Essential Skills
Program (ESP) is available at each
secondary school.
The Adolescent Day Treatment
Program, located in the Educational
Annex, 1780 Bent Ave., is a
district-wide program designed to
meet the educational needs of seventh-
through 12th-grade students
who, because of extreme behaviors,
have not been successful in a less
restrictive environment.
The district offers an array of
support services to enhance the
educational programs of children.
These include psychological
services, social work services, counseling
and guidance services, an
audiology program, speech and language
program, visually impaired
program, occupational and physical
therapy program, assistive technology
program, adaptive physical
education, school health services,
transition program, homebound
instruction and specialized transportation.
The Educational Resource
Center offers support in the form
of consultation services, educational
materials and in-services to regular
classroom teachers, special educators
and other personnel working
with students with disabilities.
The Parent Resource Center
offers information and referral support
to parents, district staff, and
others in the community through
individual assistance, materials
for checkout, support groups and
conferences.
The special education department
contracts with Youth Alternatives
and Attention Homes to provide
interim alternative educational
settings and/or counseling services
for special education students and
the students who were suspended
for serious disciplinary infractions.
Additional counseling services are
contracted through Peak Wellness.
Total special education expenditure
for the 2007–2008 school
year was $21,091,445. Listed below
is the number of students with a
disability on the Wyoming Department
of Education Student Count
Day:
Wyoming Department of Education Student Day Counts
2006–2007 2007–2008 2008–2009
State District State District State District
% of students with disabilities 13.89% 12.37% 13.83% 12.69% N/A 13.21%
Student primary disability
category
Learning disability 5.55% 5.14% 5.31% 4.9% N/A 5.1%
Speech/language disability 3.88% 3.24% 3.98% 3.5% N/A 3.62%
Emotional disability 1.08% 1.27% 0.99% 1.25% N/A 1.29%
Other health impaired 1.89% 1.26% 1.83% 1.49% N/A 1.61%
www.laramie1.org Report Card 2007–2008 • 19