Special Education

Special Education

At Wayne Local Schools, we promote a welcoming and inclusive environment where all students, including those with disabilities, are valued and supported. Each student has unique strengths, and we work with families, teachers, and related service staff to develop and implement individualized plans that address each student's specific needs and encourage growth in the areas of academics, behavior, and social and emotional skills.

Collaboration is at the heart of our approach. By partnering with families, we foster open communication and shared decision-making, working together to create a positive educational experience that supports each child’s journey.

Child Find

Wayne Local Schools is committed to offering a free and appropriate public education to meet the unique needs of students in the district with special needs, ages 3-21.

Public schools are required by federal and state law to find all children with disabilities, ages birth through 21, and provide special education services for ages 3-21 for any child identified as disabled under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA). Disabilities under IDEIA include autism, intellectual disability, deaf-blindness, hearing impairment, emotional disturbance, visual impairment, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairment, other health impairment, specific learning disability, speech and language impairment, traumatic brain injury, and developmental delay. If after an evaluation, a child is determined to have a disability under IDEIA, the child is eligible to receive special education services through the school district.

All information related to the referral, evaluation, identification, and special education services is confidential information. Parents retain specific rights related to confidentiality, review of records, release of information, and accuracy of records for any child referred to special education, identified as special education, or who receives special education services.

Should you know of a child with a disability please contact Kevin Wright, Director of Student Services at kwright@waynelocal.net.

ELIGIBILITY:

A child’s eligibility for special education is determined through the completion of an Evaluation Team Report (ETR) by a school psychologist and team including the family. Students must demonstrate the need for specially designed instruction and/or related services due to a disability that has an adverse impact on the student’s ability to participate in their educational process.

Once a request for an evaluation is provided to the district, the district has up to 30 days to respond to the request. The team will agree to complete the evaluation, or present a prior written notice stating the reasons an evaluation will not be conducted. Most often this process occurs through a team meeting. When the district begins an evaluation, there is a 60 day time period allotted for the completion of the evaluation from the time the parental consent is received for the evaluation.

Should a child be found eligible for services, the district will write an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) outlining the student’s needs, current levels of performance, and goals and objectives the team wants the child to achieve. The IEP will also outline the services that will be provided to the child.

SPECIAL NEEDS SCHOLARSHIPS

Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship - a scholarship for students who are eligible to attend kindergarten through grade 12 and have an Individualized Education Program (IEP) from their district of residence

Autism Scholarship Program - provides parents of qualifying children with autism the choice to send the child to a special education program 

A copy of parental rights for students with special needs can be found here:  A Guide to Parent Rights