August 2014 – Special Educator e-Journal

Table of Contents

• Update from the U.S. Department of Education

• Legislative Announcements, Calls to Participate and New Projects

• Special Education Resources Review for 2014

• Navigating the Road to Work: What’s New at the National Collaborative Workforce and Disability

• Latest Employment Opportunities Posted on NASET

• Upcoming Conferences and Events

• Funding Forecast and Award Opportunities

• Acknowledgements

• Download a PDF or XPS Version of This Issue

Update from the U.S. Department of Education

New Accountability Framework Raises the Bar for State Special Education Program

To improve the educational outcomes of America’s 6.5 million children and youth with disabilities, the U.S. Department of Education today announced a major shift in the way it oversees the effectiveness of states’ special education programs.

Until now, the Department’s primary focus was to determine whether states were meeting procedural requirements such as timelines for evaluations, due process hearings and transitioning children into preschool services. While these compliance indicators remain important to children and families, under the new framework known as Results-Driven Accountability (RDA), the Department will also include educational results and outcomes for students with disabilities in making each state’s annual determination under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

“Every child, regardless of income, race, background, or disability can succeed if provided the opportunity to learn,” U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said. “We know that when students with disabilities are held to high expectations and have access to the general curriculum in the regular classroom, they excel. We must be honest about student performance, so that we can give all students the supports and services they need to succeed.”

The Department has worked extensively with states to ensure meaningful access to special education and related services for students with disabilities and has noted significant improvements in compliance over the last several years. However, educational outcomes in reading and math, as well as graduation rates, for students with disabilities continue to lag. With this year’s IDEA determinations, the Department used multiple outcome measures that include students with disabilities’ participation in state assessments, proficiency gaps between students with disabilities and all students, as well as performance in reading and math on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) to produce a more comprehensive and thorough picture of the performance of children with disabilities in each state.

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This change in accountability represents a significant and long-overdue raising of the bar for special education. Last year, when the Department considered only compliance data in making annual determinations, 41 states and territories met requirements. This year, however, when the Department includes data on how students are actually performing, only 18 states and territories meet requirements.

IDEA requires the Department to make annual decisions for states in four categories: meet requirements, need assistance, need intervention, or need substantial intervention. Under Results-Driven Accountability, the Department has made the following determinations for this year based on 2012-13 data.

• Meets Requirements
  Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Federated States of Micronesia, Marshall Islands, Palau
• Needs Assistance
  Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, American Samoa, Commonwealth of Northern Marianas, Guam, Puerto Rico
• Needs Intervention
  California, Delaware, District of Columbia, Texas, Bureau of Indian Education, Virgin Islands

If a state needs assistance for two years in a row, IDEA requires the Department to take actions such as requiring the state to obtain technical assistance or identifying the state as a high-risk grant recipient. Should a state need intervention for three years in a row, IDEA mandates that the Department must take specific actions, which can include requiring the state to prepare a corrective action plan, enter into a compliance agreement or, ultimately, withholding a portion of the state’s funding.

As part of the move to RDA, OSERS will fund a new $50 million technical assistance center – the Center on Systemic Improvement – to help states leverage the $11.5 billion in federal special education funds which they currently receive to improve outcomes for students with disabilities. In addition, OSERS will be working with each state to support them in developing comprehensive plans designed to improve results for children with disabilities.

“Less than 10 percent of our nation’s eighth graders with IEPs are scoring proficient in reading, according to the best available data. We can and must do better,” said Michael Yudin, acting assistant secretary for special education and rehabilitative services. “RDA is about using the accountability framework to provide states with incentives and support to implement evidence-based strategies to improve results and outcomes for students with disabilities.”

IDEA requires the primary focus of federal and state monitoring to be on improving educational results and functional outcomes for all children with disabilities and ensuring that each state meets the program requirements under IDEA. In particular, the law places an emphasis on those requirements that are the most closely related to improving educational and early intervention results for children with disabilities.

The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 enabled the U.S Department of Agriculture to make historic changes to the meals served in our nation’s schools. Breakfasts, lunches, and snacks sold during the school day are now more nutritious than ever, with less fat and sodium and more whole-grains, fruits, vegetables, lean protein, and low-fat dairy. For many kids, the meals they get at school may be the only nutritious meals they receive that day—and when children receive proper nourishment, they are not only healthier, but they also have better school attendance and perform better academically. It’s not enough, though, to make the meals healthier—we must ensure that children have access to those healthier foods.

The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act authorized a program, known as the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), that can help schools achieve their educational goals by ensuring that children in low-income communities have access to healthy meals at school so they are ready to learn. In this program, schools agree to offer breakfast and lunch for free to all students, and cover any costs that exceed the reimbursements from USDA. Designed to ease the burden of administering a high volume of applications for free and reduced price meals, CEP is a powerful tool to both increase child nutrition and reduce paperwork at the district, school, and household levels, which saves staff time and resources for cash-strapped school districts.

Starting this upcoming school year, the program is available to schools across the country. The decision to participate in the Community Eligibility Provision is a local one, and schools must decide for themselves whether this program is right for them. In order to give schools more time to make that decision, we recently extended the deadline to participate in School Year 2014-2015. Last month, USDA announced that schools now have until August 31 to enroll.

State educational agencies and local school districts often use data collected through the National School Lunch Program to carry out certain eligibility requirements for other programs, including Title I for schools serving students from low-income families. The Department of Education recently released guidance highlighting the range of options that schools have for implementing these requirements while also participating in CEP—and many districts already have successfully implemented Title I requirements using data that incorporate Community Eligibility. We strongly encourage schools and school districts that have not yet adopted CEP to review ED Guidance on Community Eligibility and Title I and USDA’s Resources on Community Eligibility, and carefully consider the positive impact that CEP can have for your students, schools, and communities.

This program has already been working in nearly 4,000 pilot schools across the country, some of which are already in their third year of participation and seeing tremendous results. Schools that participated in the pilot phase of this program saw increased participation and revenue from breakfast and lunch programs:

• In Washington, D.C.’s public schools, Lindsey Palmer, school programs manager for the Office of the State Superintendent of Education, outlined why CEP has worked so well for D.C.’s schools; including reduced stigma, reduction in administrative functions, better prediction of federal school meals funding amounts based on previous participation, more resources available to improve the meals and overall program, and better reach to those students who really needed the benefits of the school meal program.
• In New York, Larry Spring, superintendent of the Schenectady City School District, also offered high praise. His district can better focus efforts on food- insecure students and provide greater access to meals with the help of CEP. According to Superintendent Spring, his schools have enjoyed an increase in attendance since adopting CEP, which generally translates into higher test scores and improved academic achievement.

We want to give every child an opportunity to learn and thrive at school. CEP has the potential to bring the promise of healthy school meals to over 3,000 school districts nationwide. The Departments of Agriculture and Education have been working together to make sure that every eligible school knows about CEP and has the information they need to determine if it is right for them.

Secretary Duncan Announces Recipients of 2014 President’s Education Awards Program

The U.S. Department of Education today announced the 2014 President’s Education Awards Program (PEAP) recipients, honoring nearly 3 million students from more than 31,000 public, private and military schools from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. The list of schools also includes 96 U.S. Department of Defense Schools in countries such as Japan, United Kingdom, Italy and Spain.

Each year K-12 students from across the country are recognized by President Barack Obama and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan for their educational excellence and academic growth. The award includes a congratulatory letter and certificate signed by the President, the Secretary and the school principal.

“The President’s Education Award Program recognizes achievement and hard work in the classroom while encouraging students to reach even higher,” Secretary Duncan said. “It honors students who meet high standards of academic excellence, while also rewarding students who have overcome tough obstacles to their learning.”

The program has two categories that honor students graduating from elementary, middle or high schools:

• Award for Educational Excellence recognizes students’ academic success in the classroom based on grade point average or school-specific criteria and standards, such as high motivation, initiative, integrity, intellectual depth, leadership qualities, and exceptional judgment; plus high scores on nationally normed achievement or state tests or recommendations from a teacher plus one other staff member.
• Award for Outstanding Educational Achievement recognizes students’ hard work, often in the face of special obstacles to their learning. A school’s principal determines this award based on criteria developed at the school, such as showing outstanding growth, improvement, commitment, or intellectual development in particular subjects; demonstrating achievement in the arts; and demonstrating unusual commitment to learning in academics despite various obstacles.

The school’s principal is the final authority on which students receive awards and determines the number of qualifying students based on eligibility and selection requirements found here. There is no limit on the number of awards, as long as students meet the criteria for each award.

Since 1983, PEAP has provided individualrecognition from the President and the U.S. Secretary of Education, in partnership with the National Association of Elementary School Principals and the National Association of Secondary School Principals.

New Initiative to Provide All Students Access to Great Educators

As part of its efforts to ensure that all students have equal access to a quality education, today the U.S. Department of Education is announcing the launch of the Excellent Educators for All Initiative. The initiative will help states and school districts support great educators for the students who need them most.

“All children are entitled to a high-quality education regardless of their race, zip code or family income. It is critically important that we provide teachers and principals the support they need to help students reach their full potential,” U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said. “Despite the excellent work and deep commitment of our nation’s teachers and principals, systemic inequities exist that shortchange students in high-poverty, high-minority schools across our country. We have to do better. Local leaders and educators will develop their own innovative solutions, but we must work together to enhance and invigorate our focus on how to better recruit, support and retain effective teachers and principals for all students, especially the kids who need them most.”

Today’s announcement is another important step forward in improving access to quality education, a component of President Obama’s year of action. Absent Congressional action, the President is moving forward on behalf of vulnerable children and families. Later today, Secretary Duncan will lead a roundtable discussion with principals and school teachers from across the country about the challenges of working in high-need schools and how to incorporate promising practices for supporting great educators in these schools.

The three-part Excellent Educators for All Initiative includes:

Comprehensive Educator Equity Plans

• The Department is asking states to analyze their data and consult with teachers, principals, districts, parents and community organizations to create new, comprehensive educator equity plans that put in place locally-developed solutions to ensure every student has effective educators.
• Chief State School Officers will receive a letter today from Secretary Duncan asking them to submit their new plans by April 2015. These plans were first created in 2006 and are required by Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.

Educator Equity Support Network

• The Department is investing $4.2 million to launch a new technical assistance network to support states and districts in developing and implementing their plans to ensure all students have access to great educators.
• The network will work to develop model plans, share promising practices, provide communities of practice for educators to discuss challenges and share lessons learned with each other, and create a network of support for educators working in high-need schools.

Educator Equity Profiles

• To empower communities and help states enhance their equity plans, the Department will publish Educator Equity profiles this fall. The profiles will help states identify gaps in access to quality teaching for low-income and minority students, as well as shine a spotlight on places where high-need schools are beating the odds and successfully recruiting and retaining effective educators.
• In addition to the profiles, the states will receive their complete data file from the Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC). States will be able to conduct detailed analyses of the data to inform their discussions about local inequities and design strategies for improving those inequities.

Research indicates that students’ race and family income often predict their access to excellent educators. Low-income students and high-need schools tend to have teachers who are less experienced, have fewer credentials and do not demonstrate a track record of success. In Louisiana, the percentage of teachers rated highly effective is 50% higher in low-poverty, low-minority schools than in high-poverty, high-minority schools. Similarly, in Tennessee, the percentage of teachers rated highly effective is 33% higher in schools with low-poverty and minority student populations than high-poverty, high-minority schools. In North Carolina, highly effective teachers are 50% more likely to leave a disadvantaged school than an advantaged school. Nationally, according to the Department’s Civil Rights Data Collection, black and American Indian students are four times as likely as white students to be enrolled in a school with more than 20% first year teachers, and Latino students are three times as likely.

The Education Department’s actions today are about ensuring every child has access to a high-quality educator. The Department’s commitment to equity in education underlies all of its activities from the My Brother’s Keeper Initiative, Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) flexibility, and School Improvement Grants, to its Race to the Top – Opportunity proposal, among others. To learn more about today’s announcement, visit: http://www.ed.gov/.

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Legislative Announcements, Calls to Participate

and New Projects

Disability Visibility Project
http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2014/06/16/storycorps-disability/19443/
“DisabilityScoop” reported June 16, 2014, in an article, “StoryCorps Looks To Record Disability Experience,” that a new project, the Disability Visibility Project, has been launched as a community partnership with StoryCorps, a national nonprofit that allows everyday people to record casual, one-on-one conversations in an effort to preserve history. As the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act approaches next year, this project will encourage people within the disability community to share their stories. StoryCorps’ recording booth in San Francisco is making sessions available between July 10 and Dec. 13 specifically for members of the disability community to record their stories. Additional times are expected to be added leading up to the ADA’s 25th anniversary in July 2015.

Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act
http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2014/07/10/congress-sheltered-eligibility/19500/
“DisabilityScoop” reported July 10, 2014, in an article, “Congress Passes Bill Limiting Sheltered Workshop Eligibility,” that a bill that would significantly limit young people with disabilities from entering sheltered workshop programs is headed to President Barack Obama’s desk. The U.S. House of Representatives voted to approve the “Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act.” Included in the bill are changes to the path from school to work for those with disabilities. The measure would prohibit individuals age 24 and younger from working jobs that pay less than the federal minimum of $7.25 per hour unless they first try vocational rehabilitation services, among other requirements. It would also require state vocational rehabilitation agencies to work with schools to provide “pre-employment transition services” to all students with disabilities and require such agencies to allocate a minimum of 15% of their federal funding to help individuals with disabilities in transition under the measure.

U.S. Department of Education’s Guidance Letter on Charter Schools’ Legal Obligations to Individuals With Disabilities
http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2014/05/15/feds-warn-charters-special/19368/
The U.S. Department of Education issued a guidance letter in May 2014 outlining charter schools’ legal obligations to individuals with disabilities, regardless of whether the schools receive federal funding. Included in the letter are reminders that students with disabilities cannot be discriminated against in admissions and disciplinary actions; and that parents with disabilities must be accommodated, e.g., with sign-language interpreters or Braille materials, when communicating with the school.

Disability.gov PSAs Challenge Assumptions about People with Disabilities
https://www.disability.gov/newsroom/psa-download-center/
Disability.gov recently released public service announcements (PSAs) in support of the message that people are not defined by their disabilities. Each of the eight PSAs features one of Disability.gov’s “No Boundaries” participants. Each PSAs participant chose several words to describe him or herself to paint a broader picture of who they are. The PSAs are downloadable from the Disability.gov site.

PACER Legislative Alert – Supporting Youth With Disabilities
http://house.gov/representatives/find/
Congress is considering changes to the Workforce Investment Act and the federal Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) Program that assists youth and adults with disabilities to get the education and training they need to obtain and retain a job. While Congress is trying to strengthen the VR services that students with disabilities would receive as they transition out of high school, some possible changes would hurt families of youth with disabilities. PACER is asking families and others to call their representatives to make the following points critical to families and youth: (1) Oppose moving the Vocational Rehabilitation and Assistive Technology programs out of the Department of Education (the Senate version of this legislation seeks to move Vocational Rehabilitation to the Department of Labor and the Assistive Technology program to the Department of Health and Human Services, but separating these programs and moving them out of the Department of Education would disconnect them from a culture valuing parental involvement and the other programs that support students with disabilities, and such a move would damage the strong family connections and important services provided to youth and adults with disabilities by providing such services together in Department of Education); (2) Strengthen competitive employment awareness provisions (ensuring that young adults with disabilities transitioning from high school to employment are aware that jobs which pay the minimum wage and higher are available is an important aspect of providing individuals the opportunity to reach their potential, and the bill could be strengthened by ensuring that there are no exceptions to making sure young adults are made aware of the possibility of working in a competitive workplace, in addition to the non-competitive, often less than minimum wage, work possibilities). The phone numbers of Congressional Representatives can be found at the website.

Special Education Resources Review

America’s Young Adults: Special Issue(2014)
Report
http://childstats.gov/
The Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics (the Forum) published “America’s Young Adults: Special Issue, 2014,” a one-time report on young adults in the United States, ages 18-24. Findings highlight data trends and snapshots of the education, health and well-being of this population as they transition to adulthood. A working group of 22 Federal agencies, with partners in private research organizations, the Forum fosters coordination, collaboration, and integration of Federal efforts to collect, analyze and report data on conditions and trends related to child and family well-being.

Annual UN Review Focuses on Youth with Disabilities, Advancing Inclusive Development (June 2014)
Article
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=48004#.U8QPkFdhtpS
The United Nations News Centre’s article, “Annual UN Review Focuses on Youth with Disabilities, Advancing Inclusive Development,” reports on the June 2014 meeting at the United Nations Headquarters of activists and Government delegates. This annual meeting is to identify practical ways to take the rights, needs and concerns of persons with disabilities, particularly youth, into consideration as they strive to advance inclusive, sustainable development, and to report on progress made.

Bridging the Gap: A Comparative Reassessment of Vocational Rehabilitation Agency Practices with Transition-Age Youth (April 2014)
Working Paper
http://tinyurl.com/ka63x3w
“Bridging the Gap: A Comparative Reassessment of Vocational Rehabilitation Agency Practices with Transition-Age” is a Disability Research Consortium (DRC) Working Paper from the Mathematica Center for Studying Disability Policy. For youth and young adults with disabilities making the transition from school to work, may meet educational and vocational barriers not experienced by youth without disabilities. State vocational rehabilitation (VR) agencies are well positioned to help youth with disabilities bridge the gaps in their transition to adulthood. This study identified 15 practices that differentiated agencies with high and low transition outcomes. Such practices as having state leadership with exclusive transition responsibilities and developing outreach to parents, developing intensive school-based programs, enrolling more youth at earlier ages, and implementing programs to connect youth to postsecondary schools) were identified as promising. An overarching concern is whether policymakers should ask or require all agencies to implement some or all of the practices as part of their efforts to promote more successful transitions. Policymakers should consider the goals they are trying to achieve, both with their transition-age and general populations and with the environment and resources, before implementing new policies. Available in pdf (591 KB, 28 pp).

Rethinking College: The Film (2014)
Film
http://www.thinkcollege.net/training/rethinking-college-the-film
“Rethinking College” is a 25 minute ?lm produced by Think College, at the Institute for Community Inclusion at UMASS Boston. It explores the growing movement to include students with intellectual disabilities in higher education. Through the perspectives of students, and parents, educators, advocates, and policy leaders, the ?lm shows how colleges and universities can be an option for students with disabilities, providing a setting for all students to grow, learn and build toward better futures.

Universal Design in the News at the Center for Universal Design in Education Update (2014)
Resource List
http://www.washington.edu/doit/CUDE/udhe_articles.html
The Center for Universal Design in Education (CUDE) at the University of Washington has updated “Universal Design in the News,” its list of pushed articles about universal design in higher education in The Center on Universal Design in Education (CUDE) website, which shares recent articles and posts relevant to the application of universal design in education: to instruction, to student services, to physical spaces, and to information technology.

A Comprehensive Approach to Transition
Report
www.aucd.org/template/news.cfm
The Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) has issued “A Comprehensive Approach to Transition,” a companion document to “A Collaborative Interagency, Interdisciplinary Approach to Transition for Adolescence to Adulthood.” The paper focuses on four ideas: Self-determination, or a student having a say in the important decisions of his/her own life, is at the heart of transition planning; everyone should understand the culture of the youth and his/her family when making and carrying out a transition plan; Everyone involved with the youth needs to work together; and Transition Planning should include all the perspectives and organizations that will affect the transitioning student.

Bridging the Gap: A Comparative Assessment of Vocational Rehabilitation Agency Practices with Transition-Age Youth
Working Paper
www.mathematica-mpr.com/premium-publications/PDFs/disability/DRC_Bridginggap_wp.pdf
Mathematica Policy Research’s Working Paper, “Bridging the Gap: A Comparative Assessment of Vocational Rehabilitation Agency Practices with Transition-Age Youth ,” analyzes the agency-level characteristics that promote positive employment outcomes for transition-age beneficiaries and finds that, compared to youth without disabilities, youth with disabilities face additional educational and vocational barriers when transitioning from school to work. State vocational rehabilitation (VR) agencies are joint federal-state programs that are intended to help youth (ages 16 to 24) with disabilities overcome these barriers, and assist individuals eligible for rehabilitation services in attaining employment. Available in pdf (591 KB, 28 pp).

Explaining Differentials in Employment and Wages between Young Adults with and Without Disabilities
Working Paper
www.mathematica-mpr.com/premium-publications/PDFs/disability/explaining_differentials_wp.pdf
“Explaining Differentials in Employment and Wages between Young Adults with and Without Disabilities” estimates employment and offered wages of young adults with and without disabilities and finds new evidence that employment and wage offer gaps between adults with and without disabilities emerge early and are especially large for those with severe or mental limitations. The analysis used data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997. Available in pdf (487 KB, 40 pp).

Public High School Four-Year On-Time Graduation Rates and Event Dropout Rates: School Years 2010-11 and 2011-12
Report
nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp
The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) at the Institute for Education Sciences, part of the U.S. Department of Education, has released “Public High School Four-Year On-Time Graduation Rates and Event Dropout Rates: School Years 2010-11 and 2011-12.” More students with disabilities graduated during the 2011-12 school year, according to recent data from the U.S. Department of Education. Still, data show about a 20% gap between those graduation rates and the rates of students without disabilities. The report showed 61% of students with disabilities graduated, compared with 80% of general-education peers.

The Condition of Education 2014
Report
nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp
The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) at the Institute for Education Sciences, part of the U.S. Department of Education, has released “The Condition of Education 2014,” using the latest available data to summarize important developments and trends in education. The indicators on the status and condition of education represent a consensus of professional judgment on the most significant national measures of the condition and progress of education for which accurate data are available.

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Latest Employment Opportunities Posted on NASET

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More information on the topics below can be found at http://www.ncwd-youth.info/whats-new#20140626a

LEAD Center and ODEP to Present Olmstead Anniversary Webinar

This month marks the 15th anniversary of one of the most historic legal decisions affecting the civil rights of people with disabilities. On June 22, 1999, the U.S. Supreme Court rendered its ruling in the Olmstead v. L.C. case, requiring states to eliminate the segregation of people with disabilities and ensure they receive services in the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs. On July 16, 3:00-4:30 PM EDT, the LEAD Center, in coordination with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), will host an Olmstead Anniversary webinar to discuss the history and impact of this landmark decision. Additionally, ODEP Assistant Secretary Kathy Martinez authored a blog celebrating the landmark Olmstead v. L.C. decision entitled Employment First: A Key Component in Community Inclusion.

Vermont RAMP Site Shares Career-Focused Mentoring Video

Youth Services, Inc., of Vermont, one of the Institute for Educational Leadership’s 11 Ready to Achieve Mentoring Program (RAMP) sites across the country recently shared a video focused on the program. Based on NCWD/Youth’s Paving the Way to Workcareer-focused mentoring guide and Guideposts for Success framework, RAMP provides high tech, career-focused group, peer, and one-on-one mentoring for youth with disabilities involved with or at risk of becoming involved with the juvenile justice system. The Institute for Educational Leadership serves as NCWD/Youth’s host organization.

ICI Publishes New Brief on English Language Learners with Disabilities

The Institute on Community Integration (ICI) at the University of Minnesota, a partner in the National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth, has released a new brief entitled State Assessment Decision-Making Processes for ELLs with Disabilities. The brief presents information on what is known about assessment decision-making processes for English language learners (ELLs) with disabilities. It highlights information that has been collected by ICI’s National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) as well as information from other sources. Topics addressed in the brief include: (a) required assessment decision-making processes, (b) experts’ recommendations about assessment decision making for ELLs with disabilities, (c) resources available to guide assessment decision-making, (d) standards-based IEPs, and (e) recommended participants on the decision-making team.

Transitions RTC Publishes New Tip Sheet on Vocational Peer Mentoring

The Transitions RTC and Thresholds Young Adult Program released a new tip sheet,Making it Work: Vocational Peer Mentors for Emerging Adults with Serious Mental Health Conditions. The tip sheet is based on a collaborative model between Transitions RTC and Thresholds Young Adult Program which adapted the evidence-based Individual Placement and Support (IPS) model of supported employment for 16-21 year olds with serious mental health conditions. The tip sheet includes preliminary guidelines for youth service professionals thinking about implementing peer mentors into their vocational services for emerging adults with serious mental health conditions.

Pathways RTC Releases New Career Guidance Publication

What Do You Want to Be When You Grow Up?, a new publication from Pathways RTC’s Career Visions project, offers young adults guidance on career research, including career exploration, getting and conducting informational interviews, and using internet resources for further inquiry.

Coalition for Juvenile Justice Seeking Youth Video Submissions

Youth ages 13-21 are encouraged to enter the Coalition for Juvenile Justice’s Youth Video Competition. The competition is being held as part of the 40th anniversary celebration of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act. The winning videos will be shown at the Coalition for Juvenile Justice (CJJ) Youth Summit and included in 40 for the 40th, a joint venture between CJJ and Act 4 JJ. All entries must be received by July 1, 2014 at which time they will be posted on CJJ’s YouTube channel.  Viewers will then have a chance to vote for the best video between July 2 and July 22. The winner will be announced at the Youth Summit and their video will be shown at that time.

Youth Leaders Speak at White House Forum on LGBT and Disability Issues

On June 19, 2014, NCWD/Youth facilitated the involvement of several young leaders to speak on a panel entitled Youth & Resilience at the first ever White House Forum on LGBT and Disability Issues. The goal of the forum was to foster communication among the LGBT and disability communities in recognition of shared goals and challenges. The youth panel, comprised of several individuals who identify as a part of both the LGBT and disability communities, discussed their diverse experiences in education, employment, and community living. Dylan Orr, Chief of Staff to Assistant Secretary Kathy Martinez at the Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy, provided closing remarks, many of which are reflected in his blog “Same Struggle, Different Difference” – Opportunities for Togetherness. A social media summary of the event is also available online. 

NCWD/Youth Attends White House Briefing on My Brother’s Keeper

On June 16, 2014, NCWD/Youth attended a White House Briefing on President Obama’s My Brother’s KeeperInitiative which is designed to determine what works to help young people stay on track to reach their full potential. Attendees received a copy of the White House’s 90-day report:Opportunity for All: My Brother’s Keeper Blueprint for Action which identified six key milestones in the path to adulthood that are especially predictive of later success and the interventions that can have the greatest impact:

• Getting a healthy start and entering school ready to learn;
• Reading at grade level by third grade;
• Graduating from high school ready for college and/or a career;
• Completing post-secondary education or training;
• Successfully entering the workforce;
• Keeping kids on track and giving them second chances.

Minnesota WorkForce Center Signs Agreement with US Labor Department to Serve Individuals with Disabilities in Integrated Settings

On June 9, 2014, the U.S. Department of Labor announced that it had entered into a conciliation agreement to resolve allegations of disability discrimination by an American Job Center in Burnsville, Minnesota. The U.S. Labor Department’s Civil Rights Center investigated a complaint claiming that the Dakota County Burnsville WorkForce Center required a customer who was perceived to have a disability to attend an orientation for a vocational rehabilitation program before it would permit her to receive services that were not limited to individuals with disabilities.

While not acknowledging that it violated the law, the WorkForce Center has agreed that:

• It will not require customers who have disabilities, or whom it believes to have disabilities, to be assessed for or participate in disability-specific services before, or as a condition of, receiving any services that are not disability-specific;
• It will not automatically refer all customers with disabilities, or any specific types of disabilities, to disability-specific services. Rather, it will conduct individualized assessments to determine whether a particular customer may be qualified for referral to such services;
• Before asking customers to provide medical or disability-related information, it will inform those customers about their rights with regard to that information; and
• It will develop new procedures that incorporate and train its staff and file reports with CRC regarding the Center’s obligations under the law and the agreement.

DOL Announces Funding for Community Colleges to Improve Employment Outcomes for Youth with Disabilities

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) is seeking applicants for two cooperative agreements with institutions of higher education to better meet the inclusive educational and career development needs of young people with disabilities through the Pathways to Careers: Community Colleges for Youth and Young Adults with Disabilities Demonstration Project. Grant recipients will work across various youth-serving systems and use the Guideposts for Success developed by NCWD/Youth and ODEP as a framework in developing their projects. Each cooperative agreement awardee may receive up to $1,041,650. Applications will be accepted until August 11, 2014 and grants will be awarded by September 30, 2014. The full grant announcement (SCA-14-03), including eligibility requirements, is available at grants.gov.

DC Advocacy Partners Graduate Appointed to President’s Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities

Ricardo Thornton, Sr., a member of IEL’s inaugural class of DC Advocacy Partners was appointed to the President’s Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities. Of Ricardo and his fellow appointees, President Obama said, “I am confident that these outstanding men and women will serve the American people well in their new roles and I look forward to working with them in the months and years to come.” In addition to being a graduate of DC Advocacy Partners, Ricardo is a member of Project ACTION!, a coalition of adults with disabilities, a member of the D.C. Developmental Disabilities Council, and he serves as international ambassador with the Special Olympics.

Call for Applications: DC Youth Workforce Leaders Academy

NCWD/Youth’s host organization, the Institute for Educational Leadership, and the DC Alliance of Youth Advocates, are accepting applications for the Youth Workforce Leaders Academy. This learning community will support the growth and success of selected staff from Washington, DC-based organizations that provide workforce development services to youth 16-24. The applications contains an assessment developed by NCWD/Youth to allow youth service professionals to assess their own knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) and set professional development goals. The KSAs are organized into ten Competency Areas which were compiled from a review of over 70 initiatives offering training and/or identifying competencies for the fields of youth development, workforce development, education, and disabilities.

Up to 15 professionals will be competitively-selected to participate in the free 10 month Academy. Applicants should be DC residents and mid-level professionals who play a decision-making role at Washington, DC-based youth workforce development organizations. Professionals who work for nonprofit organizations, schools, public agencies, or related entities that provide youth workforce development services are eligible to apply. The Youth Workforce Leaders Academy is generously supported through funding from the Community Foundation for the National Capital Region.

DOL to Host Webinar on Mentoring Youth and Young Parents

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration is hosting a webinar on June 9 at 2:00 ET on the mentoring strategies and services showcased in the recently released, Mentoring Youth and Young Parents: A Guidebook for Programs Helping Youth and Young Parents Navigate a Pathway to Self-Sufficiency. This webinar will offer nationally-recognized strategies for developing and implementing a mentoring program. Participants will also learn more through mentor program experiences shared by two Young Parents Demonstration Programs; and receive tips about quality standards and available resources from MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership.

To learn more click on the image above or – Click here

To learn more click on the image above or – Click here

Funding Forecast and Award Opportunities

Forecast of Funding Opportunities under the Department of Education Discretionary Grant Programs for Fiscal Year 2014
http://www.ed.gov/fund/grant/find/edlite-forecast.html
This document lists virtually all programs and competitions under which the U.S. Department of Education has invited or expects to invite applications for new awards for fiscal year 2014 and provides actual or estimated deadlines for the transmittal of applications under these programs. The lists are in the form of charts organized according to the Department’s principal program offices and include programs and competitions previously announced as well as those to be announced at a later date.

FY 2014 Discretionary Grant Application Packages
http://www.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/grantapps/index.html
This site, from the Department of Education, provides information on grant competitions that are currently open.

Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy Announces Funding for Community Colleges to Improve Employment Outcomes for Youth with Disabilities
http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html?keywords=SCA-14-03
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) is seeking applicants for two cooperative agreements with institutions of higher education to better meet the inclusive educational and career development needs of young people with disabilities through the Pathways to Careers: Community Colleges for Youth and Young Adults with Disabilities Demonstration Project. Grant recipients will work across various youth-serving systems and use the “Guideposts for Success” developed by NCWD/Youth and ODEP as a framework in developing their projects. Each cooperative agreement will fund a pilot project that will build the capacity of community colleges to meet the educational and career development needs of youth with disabilities, including those with significant disabilities. The pilots will provide for researching, developing, testing and evaluating innovative models to deliver inclusive integrated education and career development services. Each cooperative agreement awardee may receive up to $1,041,650. All grants will be awarded by Sept. 30. Deadline for applications: August 11, 2014.

Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation Invites Applications for Music Donation Program
http://www.mhopus.org/Apply
Through its Keeping Music Alive program, the foundation will donate musical instruments to music programs that serve low-income communities and have little or no budget for musical instruments. Priority is given to programs serving the most students within a school population. Public, private, and charter schools are invited to apply; however, schools must be eligible for funds under Title 1 and/or serve a population where at least 50% of the students qualify for the National Lunch Program. Schools also must have an established instrumental music program (concert band, marching band, jazz band, and/or orchestra) that takes place during the regular school day and is at least three years old. Schools that offer Orff/classroom music only are not eligible to apply. Deadline for Pre-Qualification: August 1, 2014.

Arthur Vining Davis Foundations Seeks Proposals to Strengthen Secondary Education
http://www.avdf.org/FoundationsPrograms/SecondaryEducation.aspx
The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations offers $100,000-$200,000 grants to support a wide range of innovative professional development programs that strengthen teachers in grades 9-12 and their teaching. For example, projects might be designed to improve professional development for in-service and pre-service teachers, strengthen teaching skills, support practical research in teacher and high school education, or encourage innovative use of technology and new techniques for presentation of classroom materials in high schools. Projects should aim to develop solutions with potential for wide application or replication by others. Requests to support well-established programs should be for initiatives with the potential to improve the program significantly. Special consideration will be given to projects in their early stages that address the concerns and problems of secondary education on a national level. In considering proposals to support high school teaching, sustained partnerships between the faculties of colleges (e.g., arts and sciences and education) and school districts, or collaborative efforts involving reform organizations, colleges/universities, and high schools are encouraged. Eligible institutions include but are not limited to public and private colleges and universities, graduate schools of education, and freestanding educational institutes. Ongoing deadlines.

Discover: Pathway to Financial Success Grant
http://www.pathwaytofinancialsuccess.org/get-a-grant
Discover is investing up to $10 million in financial education, and any high school can apply for a grant toward a financial education curriculum. Applying schools must have implemented or be looking to implement a financial education curriculum; have a measurement tool planned or in place to assess participation in and comprehension of the financial education curriculum; and agree to share overall results of the measurement tool’s pre- and post-curriculum testing with Discover upon the program’s completion to assess what worked and what didn’t. Maximum award: varies. Eligibility: high schools in the United States. Deadline: none.

Dollar General: Beyond Words Library Disaster Relief
http://www.ala.org/awardsgrants/awards/166/apply
Dollar General, in collaboration with the American Library Association (ALA), the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) and the National Education Association (NEA), is sponsoring a school library disaster relief fund for public school libraries in the states served by Dollar General. The fund will provide grants to public schools whose school library program has been affected by a disaster. Grants are to replace or supplement books, media and/or library equipment in the school library setting. Maximum award: up to $15,000 to replace or supplement books, media and/or library equipment. Eligibility: public school libraries Pre K-12 located within 20 miles of a Dollar General store, distribution center or corporate office that have lost their building or incurred substantial damage or hardship due to a natural disaster (tornado, earthquake, hurricane, flood, avalanche, mudslide), fire or an act recognized by the federal government as terrorism; or have absorbed a significant number (more than 10% enrollment) of displaced/evacuee students. Deadline: none.

Fender Music Foundation: Grants
http://www.fendermusicfoundation.org/grants/?sec=info
Fender Music Foundation grants of instruments and equipment are awarded to music academies, schools, local music programs and national music programs across America, particularly in-school music classes, in which the students make music; after-school music programs that are not run by the school; and music therapy programs, in which the participants make the music. Maximum award: up to 8 instruments. Eligibility: established, ongoing and sustainable music programs in the United States, which provide music instruction for people of any age who would not otherwise have the opportunity to make music. Deadline: rolling.

AASA: National Superintendent of the Year
http://www.aasa.org/content.aspx?id=3404
The American Association of School Administrators (AASA) National Superintendent of the Year Program pays tribute to the talent and vision of the men and women who lead the nation’s public schools. Maximum award: recognition; a $10,000 scholarship to a student in the high school from which the National Superintendent of the Year graduated. Eligibility: Any superintendent, chancellor, or top leader of a school system in the United States, Canada, or international school who plans to continue in the profession. Deadline: varies by state.

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Acknowledgements

Portions of this month’s NASET Special Educator e-Journal were excerpted from:

• Committee on Education and the Workforce
• FirstGov.gov-The Official U.S. Government Web Portal
• National Center on Secondary Education and Transition, an electronic newsletter of the National Center on Secondary Education and Transition (NCSET), available online at http://www.ncset.org/enews. NCSET is funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs.
• National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth
• National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities
• National Institute of Health
• National Organization on Disability
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
• U.S. Department of Education
• U.S. Department of Education-The Achiever
• U.S. Department of Education-The Education Innovator
• U.S. Department of Labor
• U.S. Food and Drug Administration
• U.S. Office of Special Education
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

The National Association of Special Education Teachers (NASET) thanks all of the above for the information provided for this edition of the NASETSpecial Educator e-Journal.

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