JISD special ed programs open to all with disabilities

Newsboy photo/Sharon Kerr EXERCISE PROGRAMS yield remarkable results for the special education students at Jasper Junior High School.

Jasper I.S.D. Special Education Program goal is to provide a free appropriate public education to all children with disabilities enrolled in our schools.

There are over eight million children with disabilities in America today…that's 10-12% of our children. Special education services in the Jasper schools are available for:

(1) a child between the ages of birth to 21 with a Hearing and/or Vision Impairment,

(2) a child between the ages of 3-21 who has a learning disability, speech impairment, emotional disturbance, mental retardation, multiple disabilities, physical disabilities, other health impairments, traumatic brain injury, and autism., and

(3) a child between the ages of 0-9 with a developmental delay.

Special education services include instruction and related services designed to meet the individual needs of these students.

Does your preschool child have a developmental delay or disability? All children grow and develop at different rates, and it is very important to know early in a child's development if he or she needs special help.

Sometimes students in elementary school or even later in their career begin to struggle in the general education program. Failing grades and a decline in motivation can signal a possible problem, which could be an educational disability.

Special Education services available in Jasper ISD schools are:

•Preschool Program for Children with Disabilities (PPCD),

•diagnostic and psychological testing,

•education programming,

•extended school year services,

•vocational testing and occupational training,

•transition school to work program planning and coordination between the school and other public agencies,

•community-based instruction and vocational training,

•resource classes,

•life skills classroom,

•accommodations and inclusion services,

•content mastery labs, •counseling, •school health services, •occupational therapy,

•physical therapy,

•speech and language therapy,

•assistive technology, and

•special transportation. Jasper I.S.D Telemedicine

Program

UTMB, Department of Pediatrics has been working with Jasper I.S.D. for the past year seeing students with special needs via telemedicine. Thirteen students were seen during the 2006-2007 school year.

Jasper I.S.D. Special Education staff at the Department o f Instruction is: Caroline Levias; Director, W a n d a Morgan; Secretary, Janice Mixon, Tommy Shofner, Leslie Roy and Susann Shamblin.

Educational Diagnosticians are: Camellia Adams; Materials and Media Specialist, Billie Mahathay; Clerical/Receptionist, Betty Williams; Homebound Teacher and Milton Brack; Vocational Adjustment Coordinator (VAC)/Transition Specialist.

Other special education staff positions in Jasper I.S.D. include: occupational therapist, physical therapist, resource and inclusion teachers, speech and language therapists, instructional Paraprofessional and life skills teachers.

It is important to note that it is never too late to get pointed in the right direction. Child Find/Child Serve meets the needs of all through age 21.

If anyone knows of a child with a disability, contact Caroline Levias, Special Education Director at Jasper Independent School District - Department of Instruction - 384-9484.