Section 504 Eligibility  Does the student have a disability?  Does the disability impact a major life function?  Is the impact substantial?

Does the student have a disability?  Begins with referral for Section 504 Eligibility by the IAT  Evaluation Specialists complete all evaluations for Section 504 eligibility  Often a Section 504 evaluation entails the collection of information from the student’s medical provider and classroom teacher and does not involve direct assessment of the student

Does the disability impact a major life function?  Caring for one's self  Performing manual tasks  Walking  Seeing  Hearing  Speaking  Reading (Dyslexia)  Concentrating / Thinking (ADHD)  Breathing  Learning (Dyslexia)  Working  Eating  Sleeping  Standing  Lifting  Bending

Is the impact substantial?  Comparison should be made to typically developing students or average students when determining if the impact is substantial.  Avoid considering use of mitigating factors when determining eligibility.  Medication  Medical supplies  Equipment or appliances  Low-vision devices (which do not include ordinary eyeglasses or contact lenses)  Prosthetics (including limbs and devices)  Hearing aids and cochlear implants or other implantable hearing devices  Mobility devices  Oxygen therapy equipment and supplies  Use of assistive technology

Accommodations  Specify the location of the support  Instructional, Testing, or Homework  Use of an FM System during lectures  Define the duration of the support  Two days extended time for homework  150% extended time for tests  Describe the method  Note-taking assistance teacher provided  Note-taking assistance outline provided  Note-taking assistance digital recording device  Note-taking assistance summary provided

Accommodations  Describe the method  Shorten assignments while retaining all intended objectives (All objectives intended for the assignment must remain intact when shortening an assignment, avoid eliminating the last half of an assignment or allowing the student to choose which items not to complete)  Allow excused absences linked to the disability over 17 days (If the attendance policy is modified due to the disability, ensure the family and student are aware academic expectations will remain intact)

Section 504 Writer  Obtain username and password from your Evaluation Specialist  Ensure you have received one to one training at your campus on Section 504 by your Evaluation Specialist by October 1  Effective September 1, 2013 no Section 504 Meeting should be held in paper format (i.e. Word or PDF).  All Section 504 meetings must be completed through Section 504 Writer.  Section 504 Chairpersons should not complete the Eligibility page in Section 504 Writer

Reconcile Chancery SMS and Section 504 Writer  Review your Campus Section 504 Lists to ensure all students formerly documented through Chancery SMS as Section 504 are now appearing in Section 504 Writer  Add any student that is in Section 504, but not appearing on the Chancery SMS roster or Section 504 roster to Section 504 Writer by October 1 st.

Intervention Assistance Teams (IAT)  Ensure understanding at your campus that all referrals for Section 504 must be facilitated through the IAT  Ensure parent requests for Section 504 are addressed by the IAT within 10 school days of the parent request.  Expect all Section 504 evaluations to be completed within 45 days from parent consent.

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Individualized Healthcare Plan and the 504 Student Houston ISD Nurse Consultants Marisela Perez RN, BSN Mary Jane Reyes BSN, RN, MS Elyse Rouzan BSN, RN, MBA

What Is an Individualized Healthcare Plan? (IHP)  An individualized healthcare plan or IHP is a form created by a registered nurse to document the specifics of the student’s health problems and the nursing support that the student will need during the school day.

Individualized Healthcare Plan  Includes:  Assessment or statement of the student’s health problem  Healthcare goals and objectives  Specific interventions/actions to be implemented  Evaluation of interventions  Emergency contact information for the parent or guardian  Contact information for the student’s physician

How Can an Individualized Healthcare Plan Benefit a Section 504 Student?  The IHP documents that the student has a health problem or disability that might adversely affect him/her during the school day  The IHP documents specific interventions that might be needed to help the student perform at his/her highest academic potential.  The IHP provides contact information for the student’s parent and physician

Can a Student with a Medical Condition only and a Healthcare Plan also Be Covered Under Section 504? YES  An educational need is not “necessarily” required for Section 504 Eligibility.

Common Health Conditions That May Lead to Section 504 Eligibility  Asthma  Diabetes  Heart Disease  ADD, ADHD  Any temporary condition due to accident or illness

Should Medication Be Considered When Determining if a Condition is Substantial? NO

Questions?

What should the teacher expect during a dyslexia assessment?  Share with the teacher the assessment of dyslexia will involve a direct evaluation  Understand the assessment may take one to three hours over one to three sessions  Share with the teacher there will be requests for documented teacher observations and work samples  Work samples in the area of concern  Word samples not in the area of concern

How eligibility for dyslexia is determined?  Does the student reflect one or more difficulties with low performance for students age and educational level in the following academic skills?  Reading real words in isolation  Reading non sense words  Reading fluency (both rate and accuracy)  Written spelling (not an isolated difficulty)

How eligibility for dyslexia is determined?  Does the student exhibit a deficit in phonological or phonemic awareness?  Current and historical data  Does the demonstrate also exhibit difficulties in one or more of the following?  Rapid naming  Orthograhphic processing

How eligibility for dyslexia is determined? 4. Is there evidence of unexpectedness?

How should 504 chairperson handle SPED DNQ cases for students who are dyslexic?  Understand the ARD committee could recommend Section 504 consideration  Allow the DNQ Special Education evaluation to serve as the eligibility report for Section 504 consideration  Build a relationship with the Special Education Department Chairperson

How to process a referral for dyslexia evaluation assessment?  Reinforce all referrals for dyslexia assessment through Section 504 are facilitated through Intervention Assistance Team (IAT)  Understand the IAT determines the path of the dyslexia referral (i.e. Special Education or Section)  Avoid changing the path of the Section 504 referral to Special Education without a Section 504 meeting (Exceptions may occur)

What are the characteristics of a good dyslexia referral?  Demonstrates high levels of Oral expression is high (Very verbal)  Exhibits strengths in areas other than reading  Retains information when story is read out loud  Demonstrates specific deficits (i.e. phonological awareness)  Reads very slow and very labored  Fails to remember word families or common sound blends

How Section 504 Dyslexia could differ from Special Education Dyslexia?  Acknowledge the severity of the reading difficulty  Understand the history of the reading difficulty  Ask if there are deficits other than dyslexia  Acknowledge a possible special education referral if a currently identified Section 504 student fails to make adequate progress

How Section 504 Dyslexia could differ from Special Education Dyslexia?  Understand if the student failed to Neuhaus or Esperanza – centered intervention

What Is Dyslexia?  Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that is neurological in origin. It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities. These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction. Secondary consequences may include problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede growth of vocabulary and background knowledge (International Dyslexia Association, 2002).

School Responsibilities  TEC§ requires  Each school district provide for the instruction of any student determined to have dyslexia or a related disorder.  Each school must provide identified students access to the services of a teacher on their campus trained in dyslexia and related disorders.  Additional information about instructional requirements can be found in the School Guidelines.

Instruction for Students  Follows the 504 plan  Uses instructional components and approaches for students with dyslexia  Explicit, direct, systematic  Individualized, small group, intensive, specialized  Maximum student engagement  Meaning-based and multisensory instruction  Students must have access to a program and teacher trained in dyslexia and related disorders.

Dyslexia PEIMS Coding  All dyslexia related identification data will now be reported the Texas Education Agency (TEA) as part of the “October Snapshot.”  Ensure Section 504 meetings for all students identified as dyslexic are completed by October 25, 2013.