What is Special Education?

North Park's Special Education Programming

North Park Special Education Programming is supervised and provided by the Northwest BOCES (Board of Cooperative Educational Services).

NW BOCES provides a number of services to our member districts but most of our resources go toward providing Special Education. Our special education director and assistant special education director supervise NW BOCES special services providers working in all of the schools in our member school districts, from preschool to 12th grade. Together, our special education team provides the following services:

  • Child Find - identification of special education students through early screenings, referrals and evaluations
    • North Park Preschool holds an annual "Child Find" event each year but school and district personnel have a duty to recognize when a student is struggling in school and what services might be helpful.
    • Screening Process- North Park regularly screens for academic, behavioral, physical, and social and emotional deficiencies.
    • Referrals can come from the screening process, teachers, parents, or from students themselves.
    • After a referral is made and parents agree, the assessment process begins and can take up to 60 days to complete and up to 90 days to finalize an personalized learning plan to help students overcome obstacles to learning.
  • Occupational Therapy- Provided once/week through BOCES.
  • Physical Therapy-Provided once/week through BOCES.
  • School Psychology-Provided once/week through BOCES.
  • Speech and Language Pathology-Provided once/week through BOCES.
  • Services for low-incidence disabilities, including vision or hearing impairments
  • Extended School Year program - summer services for eligible special education students
  • Transition - services for eligible young adults with special needs, ages 18-21, on a case-by-case basis

What is an IEP?

IEP stands for Individual Education Plan, and it is a legal document in which a student’s special educational needs are detailed. IEPs are designated for children with disabilities from age 3 years through 21 years. Follow this link to gain a better understanding of the IEP process.

Useful Websites:

  • Colorado Department of Education Office of Special Education Page
    • This site/office is a resource to teachers, administrators, and parents of students with exceptional educational needs due to disability, or learners who are culturally and/or linguistically diverse or have some other special need.
  • Parents Encouraging Parents (PEP) Conferences
    • Family-centered conferences designed to offer support, information, and education to parents and professionals. PEP promotes the partnerships that are essential in supporting and including children with disabilities and their families in all aspects of the school and community.
  • Colorado Special Education Advisory Committee (CSEAC)
    • A federal and state law mandated committee that includes parents of, and individuals with disabilities, educational service providers, administrators, and representatives from a variety of related agencies.
  • Council for Exceptional Children: CEC
    • Professional organization dedicated to improving educational outcomes for individuals with exceptionalities, students with disabilities, and/or the gifted.
  • National Center for Learning Disabilities
    • National organization concerned about issues related to students with learning disabilities.
  • Council for Learning Disabilities
    • International organization concerned about issues related to students with learning disabilities.
  • Parent to Parent of Colorado
    • An organization that connects families of children with disabilities or special health care needs in communities across Colorado.
  • Family Leadership Training Institute (FLTI)
    • Prepares families to become leading advocates for children. The FLTI teaches families, who wish to improve the lifelong health, safety and learning of children, how to become practiced change agents for the next generation.
  • Rural Assistance Center (RAC)
    • Health and human services information for rural America.
  • Special Education Guide
    • Parents and educators know that children with special needs have gifts and talents—it’s just a matter of unleashing their full potential, and making sure that their parents and teachers have the right information, tools and support to help them.
  • Yampa Valley Autism Program
    • Yampa Valley Autism Program provides resources and direct services to individuals and families living with autism or other disorders to cultivate their abilities and maximize quality of life.
  • Intervention Central
    • This website offers free tools and resources to help school staff and parents to promote positive classroom behaviors and foster effective learning for all children and youth.
  • Stuttering Foundation
    • This website provides free online resources, services and support to those who stutter and their families, as well as support for research into the causes of stuttering.
  • Reading Rockets
    • Reading Rockets is a national multimedia project offering information and resources on how young kids learn to read, why so many struggle, and how caring adults can help.
  • Speaking of Speech
    • An interactive forum for speech/language pathologists and teachers to improve communication skills in our schools by exchanging ideas, techniques, materials and lessons that work; finding out about materials before you buy; seeking and giving advice on therapy and case load management issues; and exploring a myriad of helpful resource links.