Special Education

District 11 Educational Support Services
Special Education

Welcome

"The Special Education Department is sincerely committed to providing the best possible education for every student in the district regardless of individual needs. This is only possible when all stakeholders work together for the benefit of our students."
~ Dr. Barbara Day,
Executive Director of Special Education
daybs@d11.org, 520-2148

"Hitch your wagon to a star."
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Let us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us there is a private hope and dream which, fulfilled, can be translated into benefit for everyone, and greater strength for our nation."
~ John F. Kennedy

"No pessimist ever discovered the secrets of the stars, or sailed to an uncharted land, or opened a new heaven to the human spirit."
~ Helen Keller

"Disability is natural. We must stop believing that disabilities keep a person from doing something. Because that's not true . Having a disability doesn't stop me from doing anything."
~ Benjamin Snow, Grade 8, Woodland Park, Colorado, in an essay entitled "Attitudes About People with Disabilities" (Jan 19)

We, the stakeholders of Colorado Springs School District 11, will work in partnership to provide high quality instruction for all students and help each student to reach his or her full potential as part of their lifelong learning.

News

We need Members! Parents, Teacher, ESP, and other Community Members: Join our SEAC Committee. Click here to find out more.
If you would like to join SEAC, please fill out the form below and click SUBMIT.

The Special Education Department is currently seeking volunteers who will make at commitment to the Special Education Advisory Committee (SEAC). Volunteers should be able to attend most of the ten meetings per year and have an eagerness to work toward improving the achievement and programming for Special Education students in a collaborative setting.

**Read our Fall Special Education Newsletter (pdf file)**

Special Education FAQ's

The Sibling Support Project of the Arc of the United States is pleased to announce SibNet and SibKids. SibNet and SibKids are the Internet's only resources for and about brothers and sisters of people with special health, developmental, and emotional needs. Read more...

What We Believe

Mission: The Special Education Department will provide leadership, guidance, and professional development to District 11 staff to ensure success for students with educational disabilities through research based instructional practices and compliance with state and federal laws.

Our Philosophy - We believe that:

Instruction and support must focus on the total child
Every child’s success is a primary goal.
Proactive strategies, interventions and/or research-based programs must be utilized, along with other alternatives as appropriate.
We must promote the least-restrictive environment.
Every student must be given tools for skills, confidence and self-advocacy.
We must celebrate each individual student’s contributions and accomplishments.
Our learning environments must support dignity and integrity.
Communication and respect are important for all stakeholders.

Task Force Report on Students With Learning Difficulties
Dr. Mary Thurman and Dr. Bob Howell were featured at a past Board of Education meeting. They presenting a detailed report from a D-11 task force on children with learning difficulties. This report included options and recommendations for how the district will proceed to meet the needs of students with learning deficiencies.
Click here to view the presentation.

Early Childhood Office/ Child Find
1115 N. El Paso Street
Colorado Springs, CO 80903
Telephone: 719-328-2872

The Early Childhood Office coordinates programs and services for children birth to age six. These include child find assessments to determine eligibility for special education for 0 to 5 and D11 preschool services for children 3 to 5. To begin the child find process call 328-2872 and request an intake packet.
Due to limited funding, preschool is available only to D11 residents who qualify for the program.
District 11 offers preschool in thirty three elementary buildings in conjunction with Community Partnership for Child Development.

Kathy Howell, Early Childhood Facilitator

~~More News~~

The Sibling Support Project of the Arc of the United States is pleased to announce SibNet and SibKids. SibNet and SibKids are the Internet's only listservs for and about brothers and sisters of people with special health, developmental, and emotional needs You can learn more by visiting the following website: http://www.siblingsupport.org

Both SibKids (for younger brothers and sisters) and SibNet (for older siblings) allow brothers and sisters an opportunity to connect with their peers from around the world. Both listservs have members from the US, Canada, Australia, England, Japan and elsewhere. SibNet (started in 1996) and SibKids (started in 1997) are remarkably warm, thoughtful, and informative communities where young and adult brothers and sisters share information and discuss issues of common interest.

Anyone who has email can subscribe to SibKids and SibNet. For a no-cost subscription and to learn more about SibKids and SibNet, please visit the Sibling Support Project's Web Page (see address below). Finally, if you have further questions about SibKids, SibNet, our Sibshops, or the work of the Sibling Support Project, please contact:

Don Meyer, Director
Sibling Support Project
6512 23rd Ave NW #213
Seattle, WA 98117
206-297-6368
donmeyer@siblingsupport.org

~~Resources~~

Parent & Community Resources