Who qualifies for special services?
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Children with any kind of disability that affects how they learn in school.
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This can be a physical or learning disability, a developmental delay, or autism.
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This can include issues in any of these areas — physical, learning, social, behavioral, medical, communication, or developmental.
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Louisiana residents between the ages of 3 and 22
How do you know if your child qualifies?
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They will get an evaluation from the school system to find out for sure.
Click on the boxes below to learn more:
To qualify for an IEP in Louisiana, all of the following criteria must be met:
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The child must have one of the following types of disabilities:
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Autism
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Deaf or hard of hearing
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Deaf-blindness
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Developmental delay
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Emotional disturbance
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Intellectual disabilities
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Multiple disabilities
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Orthopedic impairment
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Other health impairment
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Specific learning disability
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Speech or language impairment
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Traumatic brain injury
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Visual impairment
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The student is not making effective progress in school, and the lack of progress is a result of the student's disability.
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The student needs specially designed instruction in order to make effective progress in school.
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The student needs certain services in order to follow the general curriculum.
The evaluation and the eligibility meeting help decide if your child meets these criteria. If your child meets all of them, they will qualify for special education and an IEP.
If your child does not qualify for an IEP, they might still qualify for other services and programs. For example, they may be able to get accommodations under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.
Source: LA DOE
A Developmental Delay is when a child cannot do the things that most kids their age can do.
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When a child has these challenges, it's called a "delay". This is because their skills could catch up and no longer limit them. But if it continues past about age 9, it's considered permanent and is called a disability instead of a delay.
A Developmental Disability is a lifelong condition that make it hard for someone to take care of their daily needs.
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It can be physical (like being blind) or intellectual.
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Intellectual or cognitive refers to how someone's mind works. If you have trouble thinking, learning and communicating in a typical way, these are cognitive or intellectual limitations.
Autism is also called Autism Spectrum Disorder, or ASD.
This name reflects that there is a wide spectrum - or range - of how severely a child may be affected, and in what ways. It can be very different in different kids.
Autism has to do with brain growth and development. It can affect people's social interactions, communication, and behaviors.
People with autism often have trouble relating to people in ways that we consider typical. They may have issues like these:
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trouble expressing themselves or reading the expressions of other people
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repetitive physical behaviors
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sensitivity to things like noise or textures of clothing
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needing to have a very structured routine, and can get upset easily
Autism does not limit how smart kids are! Children with autism can be very smart and talented, sometimes in very specific and impressive ways.
Autism can look very different from one child to the next.
Some kids have trouble with things like:
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Challenging behaviors that are hard to control
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Communicating verbally
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Forming social relationships
Each child will have their own strengths and challenges.
Every child has a right to a free public education that meets their unique needs. It's the law.
Sources: Interactive Autism Network, Autism Speaks
Sources: LDOE, Autism Speaks