The disabilities, listed below, may qualify for special services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). If, after an assessment conducted by the school district, your child falls into one of these categories, an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) team, including you, will meet to structure an education plan which allows your child to maximize the benefit of the education he or she receives.
autism
• Irregularities and impairments in communication;
• Engagement in repetitive activities and stereotyped movements;
• Resistance to environmental change or change in daily routines; or
• Unusual responses to sensory experiences.
chronic or acute health (otherwise health impaired) (OHI)
• Limited strength, vitality or alertness due to chronic or acute health problems, such as limited alertness, heart condition, tuberculosis, rheumatic fever, nephritis, asthma, sickle cell anemia, hemophilia, epilepsy, lead poisoning, leukemia or diabetes.
• Based on physician's opinion regarding existence of disability that affects the student's ability to function
• Category may include children with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
cognitive impairment
• Student's performance falls at, or below, 2.0 standard deviations from the norm in basic skills and aptitude; and
• Student shows significant deficiencies in adaptive behavior, including social adjustments inside and outside the school.
emotional/behavioral disorder (ED)
• Inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory or health factors;
• Inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers;
• Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances;
• General pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression; and/or
• Tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems.
hearing impairment
• Student's hearing is at, or below, a 20 decibel HL threshold or worse for one or more of the frequencies from 500 to 4000 Hz;
• Residual hearing is not sufficient to enable the student to understand the spoken word and to develop language normally;
• Hearing loss prevents full awareness of environmental sounds and spoken language, limiting normal language acquisition and learning achievement; or
• Sensorineural hearing loss or a permanent conductive hearing loss with aided sensitivity of 30 decibels or worse bilaterally.
specific learning disability
Student does not achieve adequately for the child's age or to meet State approved grade-level standards when using a process based on the child's response to scientific, research-based intervention in at least one of the areas of
• basic reading skill,
• reading comprehension,
• written expression,
• expressive language,
• mathematical reasoning or calculation, or
• listening comprehension
that is not primarily due to visual, hearing, orthopedic, cognitive or emotional/behavioral disabilities, or to environmental, cultural or economic disadvantage.
orthopedic/health impairment
Impairments related to congenital anomaly, disease or other causes (e.g. cerebral palsy, amputations, fractures or burns which cause contractures).
speech/language impairment
Impairment in articulation, language, voice or fluency, as determined by a certified speech-language pathologist on the basis of results from a complete speech and language assessment.
traumatic brain injury
Injury to the brain caused by external physical force or internal occurrence (e.g. stroke or aneurysm), resulting in mild, moderate or severe impairments in one or more areas, including
• cognition,
• language,
• memory,
• attention,
• reasoning,
• abstract thinking,
• judgment,
• problem solving,
• sensory, perceptual and motor abilities;
• psychosocial behavior;
• physical functions;
• information processing; and
• speech
but not including brain injuries that are congenital, degenerative or induced by birth trauma
visual impairment
Central visual acuity is 20/70 or worse in the better eye with correction or the peripheral field subtends an angle not greater than 20 degrees at its widest diameter as determined by an optometrist or opthalmologist