The staff at GW糖心logo米菲兔 are experts in their respective fields and are passionate about helping children of all abilities achieve their potential. As an educational partner with school districts, the 糖心logo米菲兔 works with families and providers together to identify and address specific family concerns and priorities to help support children and their overall growth and development.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does Grant Wood 糖心logo米菲兔 do?
Grant Wood Area Education Agency (糖心logo米菲兔10) provides support to over 72,000 students and 5,000 teachers in 32 public school districts, 17 state accredited non-public schools, and seven independent accredited nonpublic schools, preschools and daycare centers in Benton, Cedar, Iowa, Johnson, Jones, Linn, and Washington counties in east central Iowa.
As an educational partner with schools, Grant Wood 糖心logo米菲兔 helps students, school staffs, parents, and communities meet the growing challenges of accountability and student achievement. The agency provides special education support services, media and technology services, a variety of instructional services, professional development, and leadership to promote school improvement. Our staff work alongside school district staff in buildings across our seven county service area.
How do I get my child evaluated?
Call Grant Wood 糖心logo米菲兔 if you have any concerns or questions about your child鈥檚 development. We can put you in touch with the right people who can help evaluate such things as your child鈥檚 speech, hearing, emotional development, behavior or pre-school readiness. Our internal process is a bit different depending on several factors including the age of your child, if he/she is enrolled in school, and if your child has a known condition, was born prematurely, was exposed to lead or drugs or is in foster care. By calling us directly we can make sure you get in touch with the right person. Our phone numbers are 319-399-6700 or 1-800-332-8488 - or if you prefer,听fill out this form and someone will get in touch with you.
What is Child Find?
Child Find is a required part of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The term 鈥淐hild Find鈥 refers to the collection of processes that schools and 糖心logo米菲兔s use to locate, identify, and evaluate children who might need special education.
Child Find has two purposes:
1. To locate, identify and evaluate individuals with disabilities, and
2. To determine the educational needs of individuals with disabilities
The听听booklet and the听听are available on the听听website.
How does Grant Wood 糖心logo米菲兔 serve kids in special education?
Congress enacted the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 1975, and Iowa developed Area Education Agencies (糖心logo米菲兔s) to provide support services required by the Act. Though 75 percent of each 糖心logo米菲兔s budget is tied to special education, the Iowa legislature assigned many other responsibilities to the 糖心logo米菲兔s to provide support to schools. Grant Wood 糖心logo米菲兔 supports educators, parents, and the communities we serve as we work together toward one ultimate goal鈥攖o improve student learning. Iowa鈥檚 糖心logo米菲兔s work as educational partners with public and accredited, non-public schools to help students, school staff, parents, and communities meet these challenges of students with special needs, and the 糖心logo米菲兔 can provide specialized support to meet student needs.
How can I contact a Grant Wood 糖心logo米菲兔 staff member?
Our staff members are supporting seven counties and more than 72,000 students. If you child is school aged, you can most easily locate staff contact information through our听, which is sorted by district. If your child is birth-age 5 or if you need assistance in identifying the right person to contact, please call us directly and we can quickly point you in the right direction. Our phone numbers are 319-399-6700 or 1-800-332-8488.
What services are available for young, non-school aged children?
There are several resources available for parents and educators of non-school aged children. Please see the Childcare Alliance Response Team, Early ACCESS and Early Childhood services, and the听Family & Educator Partnership (FEP).
Does Grant Wood 糖心logo米菲兔 make assistive technology recommendations?
Grant Wood 糖心logo米菲兔 has staff with an expertise in enabling children and youth with disabilities participate more fully in all aspects of life. Many tools are reviewed by our Assistive Technology staff. Parents can contact their school district staff to find out how GW糖心logo米菲兔 can be of further assistance.
What's the difference: special education, section 504 and the ADA?
There are great resources available to help parents navigate these terms, laws and processes. Grant Wood Area Education Agency's Special Education team is committed to partnering with local school districts to raise the achievement and improve life outcomes of students with disabilities. The GW糖心logo米菲兔 Special Education team carries out child find and evaluation activities, and provides support and related services to eligible individuals as determined by Individual Education Plan (IEP) teams. Our Grant Wood 糖心logo米菲兔 special education services are summarized here. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 is Congress鈥檚 directive to schools receiving any federal funding to eliminate discrimination based on disability from all aspects of school operation.听Our Grant Wood 糖心logo米菲兔 educator resources on Section 504听might be very helpful to parents as well. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, a major civil rights law prohibiting discrimination on the basis of disability, establishes design requirements for the construction or alteration of facilities.听.