Special Education Department
|
| RESOURCES FOR PARENTS | |
| PARENTAL RIGHTS | |
| BEHAVIOR STRATEGIES | |
| DYSLEXIA | |
| IEP PROCESS | |
| RESOURCES FOR TEACHERS | |
| ACCOMMODATIONS AND MODIFICATIONS | |
| BEHAVIOR STRATEGIES FOR LOW COGNITIVE STUDENTS | |
| BEHAVIOR TIPS | |
| CLASSROOM STRATEGIES FOR ADHD STUDENTS | |
| CONTACT | |
 |
Director of Special Services |
|
Dr. Keyra Comer (605) 717-1219 e-mail kcomer@spearfish.k12.sd.us |
||
| Welcome to the Spearfish School District special education department. Our district provides special education and related services to eligible students based upon South Dakota eligibility requirements. Services are dependent upon each qualified child's educational needs including: academic, speech/language, fine motor, gross motor, psychological, audiological, school health, transportation, or vocational. | ||
What is Special Education? |
||
| Special Education is specialized instruction given to a student because of a disability that adversely affects his/her educational performance. A student may be determined eligible for services under the following categories: Cognitive Disability, Emotional Disturbance, Specific Learning Disability, Speech/Language Impairment, Developmental Delay, Orthopedic Impairment, Austism, Traumatic Brain Injury, Other Health Impaired, Multiple Disabilities, Deaf/Blindness, Deafness, Hearing Impairment, and Visual Impairment. | ||
Early Intervention |
||
Referral and Assessment: Children birth to five years of age may be referred for a screening, which is conducted at no charge by our district at specified times throughout the school year. If concerns are noted during the screening, a more comprehensive evaluation may be necessary. An evaluation may include educational, psychological, gross motor, fine motor, speech/language, developmental, and/or health. To schedule a screening call: 717-1219. |
||
Early Intervention Services: Early intervention services are provided to children that qualify for special education under the SD eligibility requirements. Developmentally appropriate services are provided to meet the needs of the students which have been identified by the team (including the parents). The extent of services and location depends upon the students individual needs. Note: If a student begins the year as a qualified child for special education in any EI program, and is tested during the school year and found NOT eligible, the services provided to the child will discontinue. |
||
School Age Children (3-21) |
||
Pre-Referral: Each building has a TAT (Teacher Assistance Team), which is managed by general education personnel to support the success of students in general education classrooms. One of the main purposes of TAT is to identify and attempt interventions in general education classrooms to support students’ access to general education curriculum. Only after general education resources have been exhausted is a student from TAT to be referred for special education evaluation. When a team refers a student, they are saying that they suspect the student has a disability and needs specially designed instruction. The intent of this pre-referral process is to ensure the team has afforded the student all appropriate interventions, and to prevent the inappropriate referral of students to special education. |
||
Assessment: It is the responsibility of the school to obtain informed, written parental consent before conducting the initial evaluation. The school will inform the parent of all types of testing instruments to be used, based upon the concerns noted at the time of referral. Parental consent is voluntary and may be revoked at any time. Typical evaluations conducted include: cognitive ability, academic achievement, adaptive behavior (life skills), social/emotional, attention, transition (for those 16 and older), classroom observations, and functional assessments. Once consent is given, the school must complete the evaluation within 25 school days, unless an extension has been mutually agreed upon with parents. |
||
| District Wide Staff | |
| Dan Poeppel - Secretary | |
Dr. Cherise Lerew - School Psychologist |
|
| Amanda Gale - School Social Worker | |
| Kim Crosswait - Physical Therapist | |
| Vicki Hobbs - Occupational Therapist | |
Anna Sparling - Adaptive PE |
|
| Special Education Teachers | |
| Reva Sigle - West | |
| Betty Lenners - West | |
| Amy Olness - West | |
| Betsy Koisinen - West | |
| Christine Skoglund - West/East | |
| Karen Kissack - East | |
| Susan Deichert - East | |
| Kim Arnett - East | |
| Punky Engesser - MS | |
| Tonya Mullaney - MS | |
| Sheri Potter - MS | |
| Ann Wince-Lyon - HS | |
| Sonja Johnson - HS | |
| Shannon Gusso - HS | |
| Jamie Mutter - HS | |
| Charlie Neilson - HS | |
| Speech Language Pathologists | |
| Judy Schurrer - West | |
| Julie Peldo - West | |
| Cheryl Lind - West | |
| Lydia Hughes - East/MS/HS | |
| Learning Center | |
| Kristi Delahoyde - West | |
| Tanya Seyer - East | |
| Samantha Bartels - MS | |
| Linda Outland - HS | |