Professional Resources – Education/Special Education

• Bullying
  Resources for attorneys, parents and educators
  Connecticut Law Update, July 2011
  StopBullying.gov
  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
  U.S. Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights

• Civil Rights
  US Government, Office of Civil Rights
  Ensure equal access to education and promote educational excellence through vigorous enforcement of civil rights. The OCR serves student populations facing discrimination and the advocates and institutions promoting systemic solutions to civil rights problems. Agency-initiated cases (compliance reviews) permit OCR to target resources on compliance problems that appear particularly acute. OCR also provides technical assistance to help institutions achieve voluntary compliance with the civil rights laws that OCR enforces.

• English Language Learners (ELL Students)
  U.S. Departments of Education and Justice Release Joint Guidance on ELL Access to Quality Education
  States, school districts and schools have obligations under federal law to ensure that English learner students have equal access to high-quality education and the opportunity to achieve their full academic potential.
  Fact sheet about schools’ obligations to students
  Fact sheet about schools’ obligations to communicate with limited-English proficient parents
  Toolkit to help school districts identify English learner students

• Hartford Public Schools Choice and Enrollment 
  Hartford Public Schools: Choice and Enrollment

• Homeless Students and Access to Higher Education
  National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth (NAEHCY) 

   

• Juvenile Justice
  Memorandum of Agreement between Hartford Public Schools and Hartford Police Department ensuring consistent response to incidents of student misbehavior in non-emergency school disruptions; clarifying role of law enforcement; reducing involvement of police and court agencies for misconduct at school and school-related events. November, 2012

• Mental Health
  Blind Spot: Missed Early Warning Signs and Children’s Mental Health
  Andrea Spencer, PhD, for the Center for Children’s Advocacy, July 2012

• Special Education
  A Parent’s Guide to Special Education
  Connecticut State Department of Education
  Procedural Safeguards under IDEA, July 2011 Special Education: Protecting Your Child, Protecting Your Rights Rules, Regulations & Rights in School Your Child’s Rights in School
  Mythbusting: Breaking Down Confidentiality and Decision-Making Barriers to Meet the Education Needs of Children in Foster Care
  Kathleen McNaught, American Bar Association, 2005

• Suspension
  Memo from Hartford School System Assistant Superintendent for Special Education Services:
  (Nov 2, 2006 – Asking parent to pick up child at school because of behavioral incident is to be considered a school suspension)
  Civil Rights Data Collection Data Snapshot: School Discipline
  (Mar 2014 – US Dept of Education Office for Civil Rights, School Discipline, Restraint, and Seclusion Highlights

• Trauma
  Helping Traumatized Children Learn

• Tutoring
  SES Request Form (English)  (Spanish)
  Supplemental Educational Services (SES) is part of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001. Through SES, parents can get free tutoring services for their children to provide extra help in academic subjects such as reading, language arts, and math. Tutoring is usually before or after school, on weekends or during summer months, and must be in line with state academic standards and connected to the school district’s instructional program. Eligible families choose a provider from a list developed by the state. School districts pay providers directly.