Long Island Special Education Parent Center

Long Island Special Education Parent Center - PDF  (62 KB)

October 2011

TO:
District Superintendents
Superintendents of Public Schools
Presidents of Boards of Education
Superintendents of State-Operated and State-Supported Schools
Executive Directors of Approved Private Schools
Principals of Public, Nonpublic, and Charter Schools
New York City Department of Education
Organizations, Parents and Individuals Concerned with Special Education
Commissioner's Advisory Panel for Special Education Services
Special Education Parent Centers
Regional Special Education Technical Assistance Support Centers
Impartial Hearing Officers
Early Childhood Direction Centers
Mediators
Other State Agencies

FROM:
James P. DeLorenzo 

SUBJECT:
Long Island Special Education Parent Center

The New York State Education Department (NYSED), P-12: Office of Special Education announces an award to Long Island University for the operation of a Special Education Parent Technical Assistance Center (TAC) in the Long Island region of New York State (NYS).  This region covers the Nassau, Eastern Suffolk and Western Suffolk Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) service areas.  The center, along with the 12 other Special Education Parent Centers across NYS, will contribute to the implementation of the NYS Board of Regents Policy on Improving Student Achievement and School Performance through Parent and Family Partnerships.

The Special Education Parent Centers provide parents of children with disabilities with information, resources, and strategies to:

• promote their meaningful involvement in their children’s education programs, including information regarding the special education process (referrals, individual evaluations and individualized education program development and transition planning);
• assist in understanding their children’s disabilities;
• promote early resolution of disputes between parents and school districts;
• promote the use of resolution sessions and special education mediation;
• assist in understanding procedural due process rights, including the right to impartial hearings and appeals and the State complaint process; and
• enhance parents’ skills and levels of confidence to communicate effectively and work collaboratively with other schools and other stakeholders to advocate and actively participate in their children’s education program.

In order to promote the development of effective parental and family engagement statewide, the Parent Centers:

• collaborate with public school districts on methods to facilitate positive parent involvement as a means of improving special education services and results for children with disabilities;
• improve parent participation in the survey process to measure the percent of parents with a child receiving special education services who report that schools facilitated parent involvement as a means of improving services and results for children with disabilities; and
• assist NYSED to identify and promote effective practices for positive parental involvement in the special education process.

The contact information for the Long Island Parent Center is below and is available on our website at http://www.p12.nysed.gov/specialed/techassist/parentcenters.htm.

Long Island Parent Center
Center for Community Inclusion
Brentwood Campus, Long Island University
100 Second Avenue
Brentwood, New York 11717
Phone Number:  516-589-4562

To ensure dissemination to appropriate individuals within a school district, I ask Superintendents to please share this memorandum with individuals such as Directors of Special Education, School Psychologists, Committee on Special Education and Committee on Preschool Special Education Chairpersons, Guidance Counselors, Directors of Pupil Personnel and Parent Teacher Associations.  Questions regarding this memorandum may be directed to Barbara Gioia at 518-486-7462.