Special Education

When registering at PAUSD, please provide a copy of your students Individualized Education Program (IEP), which will assist us in placing your student.

Site assignments 2022-23

Site	Coordinator	Program Specialist
Addison Elementary	Marissa Ciardella	Tina Diaz
Alternative Programs	Laurie Garcia	Angela Hernandez
Barron Park Elementary	Marissa Ciardella	Cassidy Walko
Duveneck Elementary	Marisol Briones	Tina Diaz
El Carmelo Elementary	Laurie Garcia	Jeanne Ortiz
Escondido Elementary	Teri Lee	Melissa Brown
Fairmeadow Elementary	Laurie Garcia	Jeanne Ortiz
Herbert Hoover Elementary	Teri Lee	Melissa Brown
Juana Briones Elementary	Marissa Ciardella	Cassidy Walko
Lucille M. Nixon Elementary	Marissa Ciardella	Cassidy Walko
Ohlone Elementary School	Teri Lee	Melissa Brown
Palo Verde Elementary	Laurie Garcia	Jeanne Ortiz
Private Schools	Teri Lee	Melissa Brown
Greendell	Marissa Ciardella	Cassidy Walko
Walter Hays Elementary	Marissa Ciardella	Tina Diaz
Frank S. Greene Jr. Middle	Marisol Briones	Tina Diaz
Ellen Fletcher Middle	Marissa Ciardella	Cassidy Walko
Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle	Laurie Garcia	Jeanne Ortiz
Henry M. Gunn High	Teri Lee	Melissa Brown
Palo Alto High	Marisol Briones	Christina Dias
Post Secondary Programs	Laurie Garcia	Angela Hernandez

Connect with us!

If you have any questions or concerns please contact your site Coordinator / Program Specialist or open a ticket.

After an initial evaluation has been completed, the IEP team will meet formally to decide whether your child qualifies for special education services. To be eligible, the student must (1) have a qualifying disability, and (2) as a result of this disability, require special education services to benefit from his or her public school education. Data from the comprehensive psychoeducational evaluation is the basis for determining eligibility.

The Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) offers a range of educational programs for students who qualify for an IEP. The IEP is developed by the IEP team and specifies which services a student will receive by frequency, duration, and location. It will identify how much of your child's day will be spent in the general education setting and how much will be spent in a special education setting, if applicable.

Adapted Physical Education

Adapted physical education, nursing services, counseling support, behavior support, occupational therapy, and other services are available when a student's IEP determines this need.

Behaviorist

This is the specialist who supports the students and school staff with behavior plans, functional analysis, and creating/modifying behavioral structures for students.

Futures Program

The PAUSD FUTURES program is a student-focused program that serves students from Fletcher, Greene & JLS Middle Schools, Paly & Gunn High Schools, the Post Secondary program, and Project Search. The FUTURES program builds on student strengths and potential, with opportunities for meaningful transferable academic, life, vocational and social/leisure skills. Our goal is to support our students to create quality lives, becoming integral parts of the community of Palo Alto as they transition from middle school to adulthood to live, work, learn and play in their community.

General Education Program

A student with special needs can be placed in a general education classroom with necessary support services to ensure that his/her educational needs can be met in that setting.

Occupational Therapy

School-based occupational therapy is designed to enhance the student's ability to fully access and be successful in the learning environment. This might include working on handwriting or fine motor skills so the child can complete written assignments, helping the child organize himself or herself in the environment (including work space in and around the desk), working with the teacher to modify the classroom and/or adapt learning materials to facilitate successful participation.

Post Secondary

The Palo Alto Unified Post-Secondary Program, is comprised of students with special needs ages 18-21 years old. The philosophy of the program is to promote independence in all areas of life similar to their typically developing peers. Students participate in educational, community, social, and employment activities within their local communities to maximize their exposure to real life experiences. A large part of the program is becoming independent through securing and maintaining a paid full or part time job in order to become a contributing and valued member of society. To learn more about the program and how to become involved, please contact Brian Northen.

Project Search

The Project SEARCH vocational Internship Program is a unique, business-led, one-year, school-to-work program that takes place entirely at the workplace. Total workplace immersion facilitates a seamless combination of classroom instruction, career exploration, and relevant job-skills training through strategically designed internships. PAUSD Project Search is a collaborative partnership with business liaison Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, HOPE Rehabilitative Services, PAUSD and the Regional Center. To learn more about the program and how to become involved, please contact Tosh Lang.

Pre-School Intervention Program

Pre-school age children with special needs may be served in several ways:

• Designated instruction and services only
• Specialized Academic Instruction
• Specialized Academic Instruction with designated instruction and services

Related Services

Support services (related services) are provided to special need students when they are required to help support his/her instructional program.

Specialized Academic Instruction (SAI)

A student may be eligible for a specialized Academic Instruction (SAI) class when the Individual Education Program (IEP) Team determines that his/her educational needs cannot be satisfactorily met in general education classes for the majority of the student's day even with the use of support services.
Students in Specialized Academic Instruction classes will participate in nonacademic and extracurricular services and activities with their non-disabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate. Those students qualified for special education services will receive services under the direction of the instructional support team. The instructional support team will provide services in an Individual Education Program (IEP) developed by an Individual Education Program (IEP) Team. The responsibilities of the instructional support team include providing instruction, resource information, monitoring pupil progress on a periodic basis, reviewing/revising Individual Education Programs (IEP's), coordinating services, and consulting with parents and staff.

Speech and Language

Services are offered at all schools, Speech and language specialists provide support for articulation, voice, fluency, and language disorders.

Transportation

EC Section 56040 states: "Every individual with exceptional needs, who is eligible to receive special education instruction and related services under this part [ Part 30 ] shall receive that instruction and those services at no cost to his or her parents or, as appropriate, to him or her." Special education transportation is defined in federal regulation [34 CFR Section 300.34(c)(16 )] as a related service. Transportation is required to be provided as a related service if it is required to assist a child with a disability benefit from special education. In addition, as required for any special education program, the service must be provided to meet the criteria for a free, appropriate public education as defined in federal regulation 34 CFR Section 300.17.

The Individualized Education Program (IEP), is a written document that's developed for each public school child who is eligible for special education. The Individualized Education Program (IEP) is created through a team effort and reviewed at least once a year.

Before an Individualized Education Program (IEP) can be written, your child must be eligible for special education. By federal law, a multidisciplinary team must determine that (1) she's a child with a disability and (2) she requires special education and related services to benefit from the general education program.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), a federal law, requires certain information to be included in the Individualized Education Program (IEP) but doesn't specify how the Individualize Education Program (IEP) should look. Because states and local school systems may include additional information, forms differ from state to state and may vary between school systems within a state. 

Eligibility

A student may qualify for special education services as an individual with special needs in one of thirteen areas identified by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). These are:

• Autism
• Deaf
• Deaf-Blind
• Emotionally Disturbed
• Hard of Hearing
• Intellectual Disability
• Multiple Handicapped
• Orthopedically Impaired
• Other Health Impaired
• Specific Learning Disability
• Speech-Language Impaired
• Traumatic Brain Injury
• Visually Impaired

Individualized Education Program (IEP) Team Members

The members of the multidisciplinary team who write your child's Individualized Education Program (IEP) include:

• You, the parents, who have valuable insights and information about his strengths and needs and ideas for enhancing his education
• General education teacher(s) who can share information about classroom expectations and your child's performance
• A special education teacher who has training and experience in educating children with disabilities and in working with other educators to plan accommodations
• An individual who can interpret the results of your child's evaluation and use results to help plan an appropriate instructional program
• A representative of the school system who knows about special education services and has the authority to commit resources
• Individuals with knowledge or special expertise about your child that are invited by you and/or the school district
• Representatives from transition services agencies, when such services are being discussed
• Your child, when appropriate, and whenever transition is discussed

What is the difference between an Individualized Education Program (IEP) and a 504 Plan?

Individualized Education Program (IEP)

The Individualized Educational Plan (IEP) is a plan or program developed to ensure that a child who has a disability identified under the law and is attending an elementary or secondary educational institution receives specialized instruction and related services.

504

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act helps a child with special health care needs to fully participate in school. Usually, a 504 Plan is used by a general education student who is not eligible for special education services. A 504 Plan lists accommodations related to the child’s disability and required by the child so that he or she may participate in the general classroom setting and educational programs. For example, a 504 Plan may include:

• Plans to make a school wheelchair-accessible
• Your child’s assistive technology needs during the school day
• Permission for your child to type assignments instead of writing them by hand
• Permission for your child to hand in assignments late due to illness or a hospital stay

The 504 Plan is a plan developed to ensure that a child who has a disability identified under the law and is attending an elementary or secondary educational institution receives accommodations that will ensure their academic success and access to the learning environment.

Subtle but Important Differences

Not all students who have disabilities require specialized instruction. For students with disabilities who do require specialized instruction, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) controls the procedural requirements, and an IEP is developed. The IDEA process is more involved than that of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and requires documentation of measurable growth. For students with disabilities who do not require specialized instruction but need the assurance that they will receive equal access to public education and services, a document is created to outline their specific accessibility requirements. Students with 504 Plans do not require specialized instruction, but, like the IEP, a 504 Plan should be updated annually to ensure that the student is receiving the most effective accommodations for his/her specific circumstances.

• Special Education Community Advisory Committee (CAC)
• Special Education Handbook (Guía de Educación Especial)

Information and Brochures

• Special Education Organizational Chart
• AAC Brochure
• AT Brochure
• Behavior Support Services Brochure
• Behavior Support Services Brochure TK
• EMRHS Brochure
• Psychological Services
• DHH Program Brochure
• PAUSD FUTURES Brochure
• Occupational Therapy Brochure
• Visually Impaired Program Brochure
• Adaptive PE Brochure
• Dyslexia Presentation Special Education

Submit a Special Education Records Request form to obtain records for students who were served in special education at the Palo Alto Unified School District.

Accommodations

Accommodations do not change what the student learns. Accommodations allow the student to work around limitations related to his/her disability in order to access the general education curriculum. An accommodation is a change in the course, standard, test preparation, location, timing, scheduling, expectations, student response, and/or other attribute which provides access for a student with a disability to participate in a course, standard or test, which does not fundamentally alter or lower the standard or expectation of the course, standard or test.
Accommodations include supports and techniques that provide equal access to instruction and assessment for students with disabilities. Designed to "level the playing field" for students with disabilities, accommodations are generally grouped into the following categories:

• Presentation - e.g., repeat directions, read aloud, use of larger bubbles on answer sheets, etc.
• Response - e.g., mark answers in book, use reference aids, point, use of computer, etc.
• Timing / Scheduling - e.g., extended time, frequent breaks, etc.
• Setting - e.g., study carrel, special lighting, separate room, etc.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Federal law that protects persons with disabilities from discrimination in the operations of public businesses and governments.

Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP)

A plan to address problem behavior that includes, as appropriate, positive behavioral interventions, strategies, and supports; program modifications; and supplementary aids and services that may be required to address the problem behavior.

Child with a Disability

A child who has a disability as defined in one of the 13 disability categories in IDEA and who needs special education and related services because of the disability; or a child aged 3 through 9 who is experiencing developmental delay.

Child Find

Ongoing activities undertaken by states and local school districts to locate, identify, and evaluate all children residing in the state who are suspected of having disabilities so that a free appropriate public education (FAPE) can be made available to all eligible children, including all children in public and private schools, including religious schools.

Courses of Study

Middle and high school course work (or classes) that lead to a certain type of diploma and/or are required for post-secondary education.

Curriculum Based Measurement (CBM)

Tools for measuring student competency and progress in the basic skill areas of reading fluency, spelling, mathematics and written language.

Developmental Delay

A disability category states may use for certain students aged three through nine as a way to provide early services for students suspected of having a disability. If used, the definition of developmental delay is determined by the state and may include a child whose development, as measured by appropriate diagnostic tests and procedures, lags behind peers in one or more of the following areas: physical development, cognitive development, communication development, social or emotional development, or adaptive development, and who, because of such delays, needs special education and related services.

Disability Categories

IDEA disability categories include autism, deaf-blindness, deafness, emotional disturbance, hearing impairment, mental retardation, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairment, other health impairment (e.g., asthma, attention deficit disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, diabetes, epilepsy, heart condition, hemophilia, lead poisoning, leukemia, nephritis, rheumatic fever, sickle cell anemia and Tourette syndrome), specific learning disability, speech or language impairment, traumatic brain injury, visual impairment (including blindness), and developmental delay.

Due Process Complaint

A written complaint filed by a parent or a school district involving any matter relating to the identification, evaluation, educational placement or provision of a free appropriate public education to a student with a disability. Due process complaints must be filed within two years of the matter in dispute.

Due Process Hearing

A formal, quasi-legal procedure before an administrative law judge who is not an employee of the state educational agency or school district. Both the parents and the school district present arguments and evidence.

Early Intervention Services

Services to infants and toddlers provided under Part C of IDEA. Part C established the Program for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities, a federal grant program that assists states in operating a comprehensive statewide program of early intervention services for infants and toddlers with disabilities, aged birth through age 2 years, and their families. Early intervention services include multidisciplinary evaluation of needs of children and family-directed identification of the needs of each family as set out in an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP).

Eligibility

The determination that a student is a child with a disability.

Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)

Special education and related services that are provided at public expense, under public supervision and direction, and without charge to the parent, and that meet the standards of the state education department. Special education and related services must be provided in conformity with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) as required by IDEA.

Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA)

A problem-solving process for addressing student problem behavior. FBA relies on a variety of techniques and strategies to identify the reasons for a specific behavior and to help IEP teams select interventions that directly address the problem behavior.

Functional Skills

Skills needed for independent living, such as cooking, comparison shopping, working with or managing money, using public transportation, and knowing how to be safe in the community.

General Education Curriculum

The body of knowledge and range of skills that all students in the state are expected to master.

Interim Alternative Educational Setting (IAES)

A setting other than the student's current placement that enables the student to continue to receive educational services according to his or her IEP. The IAES must enable the student to continue to participate in the general education curriculum, although in another setting, and progress toward meeting the goals set out in the IEP. Students in an IAES should also receive, as appropriate, a functional behavioral assessment, behavioral intervention services and modifications that are designed to address the behavior violation so that it does not happen again. The particular IAES is determined by the student's IEP team.

Individualized education program (IEP): A written statement for each child with a disability that is developed, reviewed, and revised according to the requirements of IDEA.

Informed Consent

Procedure to ensure that the parent:

• Has been fully informed of all information related to the proposed activity (in his native language, or other mode of communication)
• Understands and agrees in writing to carrying out the activity for which parental consent is sought
• Understands that giving consent is voluntary and may be revoked at any time
• Understands that revoking consent will not apply to an activity that has already occurred
• Informed consent is required for an evaluation, a reevaluation and for the initial delivery of special education services.

Intervention

A change in instructing the student in the area of learning difficulty to try to improve learning and achieve adequate progress.

Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)

To the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities are to be educated with children who are not disabled. Special classes, separate schooling, or other ways of removing children with disabilities from the regular educational environment should only occur when the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in regular classes cannot be achieved satisfactorily with the use of supplementary aids and services.

Mediation

A confidential, voluntary process that allows parties to resolve disputes without a formal due process hearing. An impartial mediator helps the parties to express their views and positions and to understand the other's views and positions. The mediator's role is to facilitate discussion and help parties reach an agreement -- not to recommend solutions or take positions or sides.

Modification

Modifications are changes to what a student is expected to learn. A modification is a change in the course, standard, test preparation, location, timing, scheduling, expectations, student response, and or other attribute which provides access for a student with a disability to participate in a course, standard or test, and which does fundamentally alter or lower the standard or expectation of the course, standard or test.

Modifications are made to general education curriculum expectations and/or standards when the academic expectations/standards are beyond the student's level of ability.

No Child Left Behind (NCLB)

The current version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) - the principal federal law affecting public education from kindergarten through high school in the United States.

Parent

A natural, adoptive or foster parent; an individual acting in the place of a natural or adoptive parent; an individual who is legally responsible for the child; a guardian; or a surrogate parent.

Post-Secondary Education

Formal education or training beyond high school, including college, university, vocational school and trade school.

Pre-Referral Interventions

Interventions delivered in the student's general education classroom that attempt to improve learning prior to a referral for formal special education evaluation.

Prior Written Notice

A written notice that the school must provide to the parents of a student with a disability within a reasonable time if they wish to:

• Evaluate the student
• Determine whether the student is eligible for special education services
• Change the student's evaluation or educational placement or educational plan (IEP)
• Refuse the parents' request to evaluate their child or change their child's educational plan (IEP) or placement.

Progress Monitoring

A scientifically based practice used to assess students' academic performance and evaluate the effectiveness of instruction. Progress monitoring can be implemented with individual students or an entire class.

Related Services

Supportive services that are required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education. Related services include transportation, developmental and corrective services, speech-language pathology and audiology services, interpreting services, psychological services, physical and occupational therapy, recreation (including therapeutic recreation), counseling services (including rehabilitation counseling), orientation and mobility services, and medical services for diagnostic or evaluation purposes. Related services also include school health services, school nurse services designed to enable a child with a disability to receive a free appropriate public education as described in the child's IEP, social work services in schools, and parent counseling and training.

Response to Intervention (RTI)

A comprehensive, multi-step process that closely monitors how the student is responding to different types of interventions, services and instruction.

Resolution Session

A mandatory meeting that the school district must convene within 15 days of receiving the parents' due process complaint. The resolution session includes parents, members of the IEP team relevant to the complaint, and a representative of the school district who has decision-making authority.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act

A federal law that requires a school district to provide a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to each child with a disability in the district's jurisdiction.

School District

The term "school district" and "school" are used to refer to the entity that has legal authority, control and responsibility for public education in a city, county, town (or combination of these), or other subdivision of a state.

Scientific, Research-Based Instruction

Curriculum and educational interventions that are research-based and have been proven to be effective for most students.

Special Education

Specially designed instruction, at no cost to parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability, including instruction conducted in the classroom, in the home, in hospitals and institutions, and in other settings; and instruction in physical education.

Specially Designed Instruction

Ways that special education professionals adapt the content, methodology (approaches to teaching certain grade level content), or the delivery of instruction to address the unique needs that result from the child's disability. Specially designed instruction should also ensure that the eligible child has access to the general curriculum so that he or she can meet the educational standards of the school district that apply to all children.

Specific Learning Disability

A disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which disorder may manifest itself in the imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or do mathematical calculations. The term includes such conditions as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia. The term does not include a learning problem that is primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor disabilities, of mental retardation, of emotional disturbance, or of environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage.

State Complaint

A written complaint that can be filed by any organization or individual claiming that a school district within the state has either violated a requirement of Part B of IDEA (the part that contains all requirements regarding the delivery of special education services) or the state's special education law or regulations. State complaints must be filed within one year of the alleged violation.

Summary of Performance

A summary of the student's academic achievement and functional performance that includes recommendations to assist the student in meeting his or her post-secondary goals.

Supplemental Aids and Services

Aids, services, and other supports that are provided in regular education classes or other education-related settings to enable children with disabilities to be educated with nondisabled children to the maximum extent appropriate. Examples of supplemental aids and services might be assistive technologies such as a computer or adapted physical education.

Transition Services

A coordinated set of activities that:

• Improves the academic and functional skills of the student in order to facilitate the student's movement from school to post-school activities such as post-secondary education, vocational education, integrated employment (including supported employment), continuing and adult education, adult services, independent living or community participation;
• Is based on the individual student's needs, taking into account his or her strengths, preferences, and interests; and
• Includes instruction, related services, community experiences, the development of employment and other post-school adult living objectives and, when appropriate, the acquisition of daily living skills and functional vocational evaluation.

Universal Design

IDEA 2004 defines universal design as follows:

"The term `universal design' means a concept or philosophy for designing and delivering products and services that are usable by people with the widest possible range of functional capabilities, which include products and services that are directly accessible (without requiring assistive technologies) and products and services that are interoperable with assistive technologies."

One central idea of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is that as new curricular materials and learning technologies are developed, they should be designed from the beginning to be flexible enough to accommodate the unique learning styles of a wide range of individuals, including children with disabilities. Some examples of UDL include: accessible Web pages; electronic versions of textbooks and other curricular materials; captioned and/or narrated videos; word processors with word prediction; speaking spell checkers; talking dialog boxes; voice recognition; and picture menus.

Universal Screening

A step taken by school personnel early in the school year to determine which students are "at risk" for not meeting grade level standards. Universal screening can be accomplished by reviewing a student's recent performance on state or district tests or by administering an academic screening to all students in a given grade. Students whose scores on the screening fall below a certain cut-off point are identified as needing continued progress monitoring and possibly more intensive interventions.

Vocational Rehabilitation Agency

A publicly funded state agency that provides direct and indirect services to youth with disabilities as they transition from school to work, in order to maximize their employability, independence and integration into the workplace and the community.

Vocational Rehabilitation (VR)

A set of services offered to individuals with disabilities designed to enable participants to attain skills, resources, attitudes, and expectations needed to compete in the interview process, get a job, and keep a job.