The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Arkansas Code Ann. 6-41-101 et seq. ensures that all children with disabilities in the Little Rock School District have available to them a free and appropriate public education that   includes special education and related services designed to meet their unique needs, and prepare them for further education, employment and independent living.  The Little Rock School District makes every effort to locate and identify all students who may have a disability through Child Find Activities.  Procedures consistent with state and federal regulations are utilized in referring, evaluating, and delivering specialized instruction and related services to students with disabilities. 

To be eligible for special education, a student must have an identifiable disability which results in an adverse effect on educational performance and the corresponding need for special education services.  Appropriate services are provided for students with the following disabilities under IDEA:

• Autism

• Deaf-Blindness

• Emotional Disturbance

• Hearing Impairment

• Intellectual Disability

• Multiple Disabilities

• Orthopedic Impairment

• Other Health Impairment

• Specific Learning Disability

• Speech Language Impairment

• Traumatic Brain Injury

• Visual Impairment

Once eligibility has been established, a program is designed which meets the individual needs of the student.   Eligibility for special education services means that a child is determined eligible upon completion of the administration of assessments and other evaluation measures by a group of qualified professionals.  

Programming consists of the development and review of an Individualized Education  Program (IEP) for each student receiving special education and related services.  It is the responsibility of the Educational Management Team to review all data compiled during the referral and evaluation process.  The IEP must be completed prior to placement of students in special education and related services.  During the process of programming, the team must:

• Provide Special Education and Related Services based on the student’s IEP.

Re-evaluation for continued eligibility of services every three calendar years or as needed by the IEP team.

Curriculum for students with disabilities must be designed to meet individual needs and to include appropriate sections of the general curriculum.  Modifications of materials, methods of instruction, and/or curriculum must be made to assist the student with a disability.

Procedural Safeguards

There are a number of specific procedures written into the law and expanded in the regulations to protect the rights of students and their parent/guardian(s).  These safeguards include the following:  due process, nondiscriminatory testing, least restrictive environment, native language, confidentiality, and the right to representation.  For further information, refer to the District’s Procedural Manual for Special Education and Your Rights as the Parents under IDEA. 

Federal law and school district policies provide safeguards to ensure that students who receive special education services are appropriately placed.  Parents are involved in all phases of the process.  The District encourages full participation at all conferences in which the educational needs of the students are being considered.  For further information, contact the Division of Special Programs at 447-1033.

LRSD policy ensures that, to the maximum extent appropriate, students with disabilities are educated with their non-disabled peers.  A full continuum of services is available in the District.  Determination of the least restrictive environment will be made on an individual basis, taking into account services needed and the program placement which would be most conducive to learning.   Based on the programming team’s recommendations of needed special education and related services, it will be the responsibility of the special education administrator(s) to locate and place a student in the most appropriate school/site.

Disciplining students with disabilities within the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Guidelines

The District recognizes that there are times that students with disabilities will need to be disciplined as a result of inappropriate and/or unpredictable behavior, which interferes with his/her personal or educational welfare or the welfare of others.  Specific procedures have been developed and must be used when determining the type of disciplinary action(s) for these students and for students suspected of having a disability.  Procedures are identified in the District’s Procedural Manual for Special Education.

A student with disabilities, who engages in misbehavior and disciplinary infractions, is subject to normal school disciplinary rules and procedures so long as such treatment does not abridge the right to a free and appropriate public education.  Care should be taken that any disciplinary action does not constitute a unilateral change in a student’s receipt of special education and related services.  For a student with disabilities, an exclusion from school for more than a total of ten (10) school days (within a school year) constitutes a change in placement and is subject to procedural safeguards.

The Individualized Education  Program (IEP) team, for a student with a disability, will convene to consider whether a functional behavioral assessment and particular discipline procedures should be adapted for that individual student and included in his/her IEP.

If a long-term suspension or expulsion recommendation is recommended, the team must complete a functional behavioral analysis and a manifestation determination review before any disciplinary action can be implemented. At this point, a special education supervisor must be involved in the process.  Contact the Division of Special Programs at 447-1033, if assistance is needed. 

The District recognizes that there are times that students with disabilities will need to be disciplined as a result of inappropriate and/or unpredictable behavior, which interferes with his/her personal or educational welfare or the welfare of others.  Specific procedures have been developed and must be used when determining the type of disciplinary action(s) for these students and for students suspected of having a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity under Section 504.

For a student under Section 504, an exclusion from school for more than ten (10) school’s days (long-term exclusion) constitutes a change in placement and is subject to procedural safeguards. If a long-term suspension or expulsion recommendation is made, the student’s 504 team must complete a manifestation determination review conference before any disciplinary action can be completed.  The purpose of this conference is to determine if the student’s behavior has a direct relationship to their physical or mental impairment identified under Section 504. 

At this point, The District Section 504 Coordinator must be involved in the process.  When appropriate, a student under Section 504 should have as a part of his/her accommodation plan a component that addresses a pattern of behavior.  Contact the District Section 504 Coordinator in the Division of Special Programs at 447-1033, if assistance is needed. 

Parent/guardian(s) of students with special health care needs, which necessitate consideration such as transportation, classroom placement/adjustment or special procedures during the routine school schedule, should contact the building administrator, school nurse, and or the Division of Special Programs for assistance. 

Arkansas law requires that all students with special health care needs, including chronically ill, medically fragile and technology dependent students, must have an “Individual Health Care Plan (IHP),” which includes input from the parent/guardian(s) and the physicians.  Forms are available from the school nurse or registrar.  Students that have a chronic condition such as asthma, diabetes, or seizures must have an emergency “Action Plan” written by the student’s physician or nurse practitioner.  Individual Health Care Plans (IHPs) and Action Plans are to be updated annually. 

Parent/guardian(s) of students with medical conditions that may require specific dietary restrictions must have a physician complete the “Certification of Disability for Special Dietary Needs” annually.  This form may be obtained from the school nurse or the Child Nutrition Department. 

Most special needs students require adult supervision at home.  The parent/guardian(s) is responsible to inform the school system whether or not his/her child can be left without supervision.  Forms are available at the Transportation Office to indicate a child may be left without supervision at the request of the parent/guardian(s) (Parent Consent Form).

• School buses will no longer sound any horn or signal device to alert parents and students that the school bus has arrived to pick up or drop off students.  School buses run on a timed schedule and should arrive within a ten-minute time-span of the scheduled arrival time in the A.M.  Please allow at least thirty minutes after school’s dismissal in the P.M. for a student to be delivered home.

• Remember, please have your child/children dressed and ready to go (10 minutes prior to the scheduled pick-up time).

• Someone must receive your child/children at the p.m. If there is no one there to receive the child/children, they will be taken to Forest Heights Stem Academy (5901 Evergreen St.).  If any student that has been transported to Forest Heights Stem Academy is not picked up by 5:00 p.m., the Little Rock Police Department will be notified, along with the Department of Human Services, and the student or students turned over to either of these entities.

• Please make address changes well in advance as it takes approximately three to five days for route changes to occur.

• No address changes can be made by telephone to the Transportation Department.  You must call the Department of Special Programs to make address changes, 447-1033, or 447-1035.  Additionally, you must report these changes to the Student Registration Office.

• In the event that your child/children will not be riding the bus for the A. M. or the P.M. route or for extended periods, please notify the dispatcher at 447-7550.  Telephones will be answered 5:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m.  After any extended absence, the parent/guardian(s) must notify the Transportation Department 24 hours in advance to assure next day transportation from the same address.  If address has changed, please notify Division of Special Programs and Student Registration at least five days in advance with date transportation is to be reinstated.

• Students, who have specialized transportation may be picked up or dropped off at locations other than the home bus stop upon written approval from the Division of Special Programs. 

• Students requiring constant care and supervision will not be left unattended when delivered to their homes in the afternoon.  Parent/guardian(s) will be responsible for providing the necessary supervision.