Welcome to the Department of Student Services

Welcome to Sandwich District #430 Department of Student Services. We invite you to learn more about Special Education Services that are available through our District. Sandwich District #430, the Office of Student Services and its Director are committed to providing a quality education to all students in the least restrictive environment.

Goal Statement

In Sandwich District #430, the goal of the Office of Student Services is to enable all students to benefit from a free and appropriate education in the least restrictive environment. Children who have been identified as having special needs are served through various types of delivery models ranging from the instructional classroom model, to the consultative model.

Community Outreach and Early Intervention

Through cooperation with both Community Outreach (Child-find Activities), Early Intervention agencies and the Office of Student Services works with both agency and school personnel, identifying and placing children age's three to five in Early Childhood classes, if they meet State criteria.

Through an interagency agreement, Community Outreach and Early Intervention screen children in the Sandwich District. If you know of any children, ages Birth - two, about whom you have concerns in regard to their development, language or environment, please contact Laura Sam at Woodbury Elementary the Preschool Facilitator at (815-786-7410).

Free Birth to Five Years Old Screening

Each month the District provides screenings at Woodbury School. These screenings are for children in the district, birth - five years of age. The remaining dates for screenings during this school year are:
Wednesday, October 17, 2007: 12:30pm to 3:00pm
Wednesday, November 14, 2007: 5:00pm to 7:30pm
Wednesday, December 12, 2007: 9:00am to 11:30am
Wednesday, January 16, 2008: 9:00am to 6:00pm - Community Screening at Woodbury
Wednesday, February 20, 2008: 12:30 to 3:00pm
Wednesday, March 12, 2008: 5:00pm to 7:30 pm
Wednesday, April 16, 2008: 9:00am to 11:30am
Wednesday, May 14, 2008: 9:00am to 3:00pm
Appointments for the monthly screenings can be made by calling Laura Sam at (815) 786-7410.

TAT Team

TAT is an acronym for Teacher Assistance Team. Before a child is brought to the PPS team, teachers meet at the building level to discuss the learning or behavior problems that a child may be facing in the classroom. Through discussions among the team, a plan of interventions is developed. These interventions may include, but are not limited to, modifications in the delivery of the curriculum, reduced assignments, and additional help both in the classroom and after school. The classroom teacher then implements these interventions for a period of time and documents the results. If the interventions are affective the TAT Team may choose to set a follow-up meeting to see if those interventions are successful over time. If the interventions are not working, or if the teacher feels that there has been very little progress, the child is then brought to the PPS team to determine if a Case Study Evaluation should be conducted.

PPS Team

Each school in District #430 has a PPS team. PPS is an acronym for Pupil Personnel Services. This team in made up of the Parent(s), District's Director of Student Services, the school's psychologist, the school's speech/language clinician (as needed), the school's social worker, the classroom teacher, a special educator, and the school's nurse. The PPS team at each school meets bi-monthly to discuss children who have been identified by the TAT process as having concerns that cannot be remediated in the standard classroom environment. Based on a recommendation from the PPS team, and written agreement from the parents to proceed, a case study evaluation could be conducted. Not all PPS Referrals will end in a case study evaluation.

Special Education Services and Related Services

After a full case study evaluation, an Eligibility Review will be conducted. At this meeting, the IEP Team (the PPS Team Members), will determine, based on the information gathered, whether a child will qualify for special education services. If the child qualifies, then an Individual Education Plan (IEP) will be developed. This IEP outlines the program that will best meet the academic and/or behavioral needs of the students. If the child does not qualify for the special education services, other interventions and strategies will be presented to the parents.

In all six of the schools in District #430, special education services are available to those students who need them. The Board of Education for the Sandwich School District has made a commitment to serving all of our children with special needs in the least restrictive environment possible. This means that whenever possible, the children will be served in the regular education classroom. Though REI (Regular Education Initiative) model, children with special needs participate in the class activities along with their non-disabled peers. The special educator goes into the classroom and team-teaches with the regular classroom teacher, and is able to help all students in the classroom, while serving those with special needs in the least restrictive environment possible. From time to time the special educator may determine that a child needs some re-teaching or clarification on more difficult concepts. This is often done in the special education room, where the child can get small-group instruction and more intensive help can be delivered to those students who need it.

At the high school level, students are assigned classes based on their individual needs. When it is necessary, our students with more specific needs, grades K-12, are served in an instructional environment. The students in the elementary and middle schools are assigned to a regular education homeroom, and go to all non-academics with their non-disabled peers. However, for most of their academic day, these students are taught in a special education environment.

Among the related services that are available to all special education students in the district are: Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, Speech, Physical Impairment Itinerant, Hearing Impaired Itinerant, Vision Impaired Itinerant, Interpreter Services, Adaptive PE, Classroom and Individual Assistants, Vocational Education, Special Transportation, Social Work, and a number of others. The necessity for any and all related services is determined by the IEP team at an IEP meeting.

DCSEA and ISBE

DCSEA is an abbreviation for DeKalb County Special Education Association. DCSEA and its director are committed to helping the school districts of DeKalb County provide a full range of programs and services to support students, families, and teachers. Consultation and assistance to school districts and students in general education settings are also provided by DCSEA. You can contact DCSEA either: by phone at 815-758-0651; by FAX at 815-758-6610; or, you can visit the DCSEA web site at: http://www.dcsea.org

ISBE is the abbreviation for Illinois State Board of Education. Questions regarding Special Education services provided in the State of Illinois can be accessed through the ISBE web site at: http://isbe.state.il.us

Comments and Questions Welcome

Sandwich District #430 and the Office of Student Services are dedicated to working with teachers, parents, and the community to meet the special needs of all of our children. If you have any questions concerning our programs or services, please feel free to contact the Office of Student Services either by phone at 815-786-6851, by FAX at 815-786-1628 or contact the Director of Student Services via email at: scollins@kidsroe.org