Student Support & Special Education
Special Education in New York State
Determining special education programs/related services
Eligibility for special education and all special education programs/related services are determined by the Committee on Special Education (CSE) or the Committee on Preschool Special Education (CPSE). These committees, in conjunction with parents and teachers, help develop Individual Education Programs (IEPs) for each school-age or preschool-age pupil with a disability on an annual basis. These IEPs include information about the unique learning needs of each student, such as the present levels of performance in the academic, social and physical development and the student's management needs. The IEP document includes annual goals in the student's areas of needs.
What is special education?
Special education for our exceptional children means specially designed individualized or group instruction or special services/programs to meet the unique needs of students with disabilities. Special education services and programs are provided at no cost to the parents. In New York State, special education is provided for preschool students (ages 3 to 5) and school-age children (ages 5 to 21).
Who receives special education services?
Special education services are available to any students with a mental, physical, or emotional impairment which adversely affects his or her educational performance. For school-age children, the thirteen handicapping conditions are: autism, deafness, deaf-blindness, emotional disturbance, hearing impairment, learning disability, mental retardation, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairment, other health impairments, speech/language impairment, traumatic brain injury, or visual impairment (including blindness).
How are special education services provided
Special education services and programs may be provided individually to a student or in a group with other students who have similar educational needs. Every school district is required to form a Committee on Preschool Special Education (CPSE) for children ages 3-5; and a Committee on Special Education (CSE) for children ages 5-21.
When a parent or teacher believes a child might qualify as an educationally disabled student, the district's committee plays an important role. It reviews referrals from parents and teachers, arranges for student evaluations, reviews the results and makes a determination regarding eligibility and necessary program/services.
In consultation with the student's parents, the committee makes recommendations about what a student needs in the way of special education services and programs, which are described in detail in a written plan for each child, known as the IEP.
The IEP determines the specifics of a child's special education program, such as specific classroom set-up, curricula, support services, and educational goals. A child's IEP is reviewed annually to ensure that it is still meeting the child's needs. Students are re-evaluated at least once every three years to determine if continued eligibility is necessary.
The New York State Education Department's Office of Special Education has completed a Special Education Programs and Services Focused Review in Hamilton Central School District during the 2017-2018 school year. This review is examined the district's compliance with selected federal and State laws and regulations governing the education of students with disabilities.
The review was conducted by the Special Education Quality Assurance (SEQA) Central Regional Office. The review process involved a review of school records of a representative sample of students with disabilities, classroom visitations, interviews of parents and staff surveys. Meetings of the committee on special education were also observed.
A copy of this report may be reviewed from the Superintendent's office, located at Hamilton Central School District at 47 W. Kendrick Ave in Hamilton, NY 13346.
RTI is a school process used to determine if a student is responding to classroom instruction and progressing as expected. In an RTI process, a student who is struggling receives additional instructional support provided by matching instruction to the student’s individual needs through a multi-tiered instructional model. Each level of instruction, also known as a “tier”, provides instruction with increased intensity.
Tier 1
Tier 1 includes instructional support in the classroom provided by the teacher. If the additional support does not improve the academic performance of the student, then the student is referred to an RTI team which is considered Tier 2.
Tier 2
The RTI team will review the information and may suggest additional assessments to target the challenges the student has and/or provide a small group intervention designed specifically for students with similar challenges. The RTI team monitors the student on a weekly basis to determine the effectiveness of the interventions and whether they should be altered. If the Tier 2 interventions are not effective the student is referred to a Tier 3 meeting in which additional intensive interventions will be developed.
Tier 3
Tier 3 interventions may include resources within the community, more frequent interventions, and/or additional assessments.
A special education referral is completed after the Tier 3 RTI process has been completed and if there has been no growth for the student in the academic or behavioral area of concern.
Each tier of the RTI process includes the parent of the student and asks that they be an active participant at the RTI meetings, providing interventions at home and monitoring progress. It is truly a whole school, community and family effort.
An excellent website for parents who would like more information on RTI is: http://www.rtinetwork.org.
Please feel free to call if you have any questions.
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act provides for reasonable accommodations for students who have a mental or physical disability that substantially limits a major life activity. Each school has a Section 504 Team, which is responsible for determining a student's initial eligibility for accommodations and for periodically reviewing the student's functioning to determine ongoing needs.
Parents/guardians who suspect that their child may have a disability that requires Section 504 accommodations should initiate a referral (with appropriate medical documentation) in writing to the building principal.
- Continuum of Special Education Services
- Learning Disabilities Association of New York State
- Vocational & Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID)
- OPWDD - Autism Spectrum Disorders
- National Resource Center for ADHD
- National Tourette Syndrome Association
- All Kinds of Minds
- NYS Procedural Safeguards Notice - This website contains the document for parents of their rights under special education law. The document is called "procedural Safeguards".
- National Center on Response to Intervention - Helpful information on the RTI process
- RTI - You tube video about RTI - A video that explains the 3 Tiers of RTI