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The Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) of the U.S. Department of Education (ED) sponsored a three-day Leadership Conference Aug. 28-30, 2006 in Washington, DC, to begin discussions about the IDEA 2004 Part B final regulations.
The opening presentation by OSEP Director Alexa Posny, titled "Building the Legacy," focused on accountability for results, flexibility in funding and paperwork, and responsibility for children with disabilities as essential elements of IDEA 2004. She noted that the roll-out of the regulations was relatively "quiet," with "few changes but much clarification." She stressed several themes such as preparing students for employment, realizing that special education is not a separate place or system, aligning IDEA and the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, empowering parents as partners, and reducing paperwork.
Concurrent sessions were offered on topics including discipline, Individualized Education Programs, private schools, highly qualified teachers, procedural safeguards, early intervening services, identification of specific learning disabilities, and the National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC). In addition, there was a general session on the 2% rule on flexibility and growth models, issues important to both IDEA and NCLB.
The ED announced a new Web site offering comprehensive information on IDEA 2004 and its implementing regulations, including topic briefs on the issues listed above, which can be found at http://idea.ed.gov.
This conference was the first in a series of events being planned around the release of the regulations. Other events include public meetings beginning at the end of September for parents, teachers, advocates, and others interested in learning about the major themes of the regulations. Sites include Philadelphia (Oct. 17); Seattle (Oct. 24); Minneapolis (Oct. 25); Dallas (Nov. 2); Denver (Nov. 8); and Sacramento, CA (Nov. 14). There will also be three regional implementation meetings in 2007 for state education staff involved in the implementation of IDEA. The latter will be held in Washington, DC (Jan. 30-31); Los Angeles (Feb. 12-13); Kansas City, MO (Feb. 14-15). Visit http://idea.ed.gov for more information.
—Kathleen Whitmire and Catherine Clarke
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