Special Education
Purpose
The La Vega Independent School District strives to provide appropriate programs for all students. The district provides facilities, personnel, and supportive services to aid students in learning at the pace and in the manner most appropriate for their capabilities. Dedicated educators continually strive to plan, establish, and implement special education programs which meet the needs of the growing community. As the needs of the population change, LVISD modifies programs to meet student needs.
Commitment to Every Student
- Child-Centered Process
- Students With Learning Difficulties | Special Education Services
- Publications
Child-Centered Process
Students with disabilities from ages 3 through 21, residing with La Vega I.S.D. boundaries, may be eligible for special education services. Parents, teachers, and other LVISD staff may refer these students for a Full and Individual Evaluation (FIE). An Admission, Review, and Dismissal (ARD) Committee determines the student's eligibility and educational need for services based on Texas Education Agency (TEA) eligibility criteria. Full and Individual Evaluations are available by appropriate referral of students residing within La Vega I.S.D. Evaluation personnel serve each school by administering evaluation, making recommendations for IEP development, and assisting school staff.
In accordance with IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), a child with a disability means a child who has one of the following disabilities, by reason thereof, needs special education and related services:
- Orthopedic Impairment
- Other Health Impairment
- Auditory Impairment
- Visual Impairment
- Deaf-Blindness
- Intellectual Disability
- Emotional Disturbance
- Specific Learning Disability (including Dyslexia and other related disorders)
- Speech/Language Impairment
- Autism
- Traumatic Brain Injury
- Multiple Disabilities
- Non-Categorical Early Childhood Disability
Students With Learning Difficulties | Special Education Services
If a student is experiencing learning difficulties, his or her parent may contact the person listed below to learn about the district’s overall general education referral or screening system for support services. This system links students to a variety of support options, including making a referral for a special education evaluation. For those students who are having difficulty in the regular classroom, schools must consider tutorial, compensatory, and other academic or behavior support services that are available to all students, including a process based on Response to Intervention (RTI). The implementation of RTI has the potential to have a positive impact on the ability of districts to meet the needs of all struggling students.
A parent may request an evaluation for special education services at any time. If a parent makes a written request to a school district’s director of special education services or to a district administrative employee for an initial evaluation for special education services, the school must, not later than the 15th school day after the date the school receives the request, either give the parent prior written notice of its proposal to evaluate the student, a copy of the Notice of Procedural Safeguards, and the opportunity for the parent to give written consent for the evaluation or must give the parent prior written notice of its refusal to evaluate the student and a copy of the Notice of Procedural Safeguards.
If the school decides to evaluate the student, the school must complete the initial evaluation and the resulting report no later than 45 school days from the day the school receives a parent’s written consent to evaluate the student. However, if the student is absent from school during the evaluation period for three or more school days, the evaluation period must be extended by the number of school days equal to the number of school days that the student is absent.
There is an exception to the 45 school day timeline. If the school receives a parent’s consent for the initial evaluation at least 35 but less than 45 school days before the last instructional day of the school year, the school must complete the written report and provide a copy of the report to the parent by June 30 of that year. However, if the student is absent from school for three or more days during the evaluation period, the June 30th due date no longer applies. Instead, the general timeline of 45 school days plus extensions for absences of three or more days will apply.
Upon completion, the school must give you a copy of the evaluation report at no cost.
Additional information regarding special education is available from the school district in a companion document titled “Parent’s Guide to the Admission, Review, and Dismissal Process.”
The following websites provide information to those who are seeking information and resources specific to students with disabilities and their families:
Publications
Special Education Resources
The La Vega ISD Special Education Department is dedicated to provide special educational services to students with disabilities as provided in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, 2004.
Autism
- Association for Science in Autism Treatment
- Association for Behavioral Analysis
- Autism-PDD Resources Network
- Autism Resources
- Autism Society of America
- Center for the Study of Autism
- Children's Special Needs Network
- Families for Early Autism Treatment
- Heart of Texas Autism Network
- Interactive Autism Network
- National Alliance for Autism Research
- National Institutes of Health
- Organization for Autism Research
- Texas Statewide Leadership for Autism Training
- Yale Child Study Center
Community
Disclaimer: La Vega ISD highly encourages a healthy lifestyle and environment for all students. It can be helpful for students with special needs to participate in physical exercise, interact socially and for parents to have a network of support. Therefore, the following list of local organizations, activities and links is maintained as a helpful tool for parent research and information, but not as a specific recommendation from La Vega ISD. The district does not investigate nor evaluate these organizations as activities.
Recreational Activities
- Variety of Texas
- Heart of Texas Special Olympics
- North Texas Angels Pageant
- No Limitations Waco
- Challenger Little League
- Little Land
Support Groups
- Down Syndrome Association of Central Texas
- Heart of Texas Autism Network
- Heart of Texas Down Syndrome Network
- The Arc of McLennan County
Funding Assistance
Childcare
Transportation
Camps
- Little Land
- Camp Bluebonnet
- Texas Lions Camp
- Camp Summit
- Children's Association for Maximum Potential
- Texas Elks Camp
- The Arc of McLennan County
Additional Resources
- Bosque Valley Children's Services
- FOCUS
- Therapy Group of Waco
- Special Education Information Center
- Parent Companion
- Texas Guardianship Association
- Baylor Center for Development Disabilities
- Navigate Life Texas
- Klaras Center for Families
- Notice of Procedural Safeguards (English)
- Notice of Procedural Safeguards (Spanish)
- Parent’s Guide to the Admission, Review, and Dismissal Process (English)
- Parent’s Guide to the Admission, Review, and Dismissal Process (Spanish)
Educational
Actively Learn is a web-based reading platform that helps students read deeply and think critically, with thousands of texts and associated instruction in ELA, Science, and Social Studies.
We offer FREE educational resources, worksheets, writing prompts, themed coloring pages, craft and snack ideas for parents, teachers & caregivers.
Boost student engagement & fact fluency with our free multiplayer educational games, math games, language arts games, and more!
Even when schools are closed, you can keep the learning going with these special cross-curricular journeys. Every day includes four separate learning experiences, each built around a thrilling, meaningful story or video. Kids can do them on their own, with their families, or with their teachers. Just find your grade level and let the learning begin!
Simulations and virtual labs for biology topics including evolution, ecology, and cellular energetics.
Created by teachers, this highly interactive tool provides an easy-to-use workspace where students can practice proofs while exercising their deductive reasoning muscles.
Coolmath Games is a fun brain-training site for everyone, where logic, thinking and math meet fun and games.
For our 12 and under users, Coolmath4Kids is an amusement park of games, lessons and more, designed to teach math and make it FUN.
GoNoodle® engages 14 million kids every month with movement and mindfulness videos created by child development experts. Available for free at school, home, and everywhere kids are!
Harness the curiosity and creativity of your middle and high school students with a supercharged social studies curriculum that gets beyond facts. Big History Project is a free, online social studies course that emphasizes skill development as students draw mind-blowing connections between past, present and future. What can you expect to see? Amazing gains in student writing and critical thinking.
K-5 math resources clearly sorted by grade and standard that are easy to download and print at home. Click on the Number, Geometry or Measurement & Data page for your grade level. All activities focus on engaging, hands-on learning.
Free, no account required, creative STEM, CS and technology activities for students in grades 5-12 learning from home
Introductory and intermediate music theory lessons, exercises, ear trainers, and calculators.
ReadWorks is an online resource of reading passages and lesson plans for students of all levels K-12. The company was founded with the goal of improving reading comprehension by bringing the latest in literacy teaching research into the classroom.
A game-based learning platform that promotes creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving in an immersive digital environment.
Starfall.com is a powerful tool that provides hours and hours of engaging educational content for pre-school and grade school kids. It uses animation and sound to engage children in the learning process.
The SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s award-winning children’s literacy website, Storyline Online, streams videos featuring celebrated actors reading children’s books alongside creatively produced illustrations.
There is free homeschool curriculum out there, but nothing like this! We offer free course sets (Levels 1–5) that combine and thoroughly cover phonics, reading, writing, spelling, literature, grammar, punctuation, art, and geography—all in one easy-to-use, beautiful course.
On The OT Toolbox, there are many free resources designed to build skills in children through movement and play. Many related services will be halted for children over the next weeks (occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech therapy, etc.) Parents are seeking resources and strategies to help their children move and play in a way that helps them achieve their goals.
Training Modules
Dyslexia
Required Postings
- Student Handbook Statement: English | Texas Education Agency
- Student Handbook Statement: Spanish | Texas Education Agency
- Texas Transition and Employment Guide (English/Spanish)
- SB 139 Notice to Families: English
- SB 139 Notice to Families: Spanish
- Resources | Texas Education Agency
- Compensatory Services: English
- Compensatory Services: Spanish
- Required dyslexia postings are in the "Dyslexia" tab above.
The Special Education Information Center (SPEDTex) provides resources and interactive features for increasing family awareness of disabilities and special education processes, with the goal of improving partnerships between schools and families.
Contact information:
- Phone: 1-855-773-3839
- Email: inquire@spedtex.org
- Live Chat: www.spedtex.org
A Continuum of Services
- Parental Involvement
- Private School Students
- Transition Information
- Legal Framework
- Supplemental Special Education Services
- Special Education Acronyms
- Child Find
Parental Involvement
| Parental Involvement |
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Parents are an important resource and support for our students and significantly contribute to their success. Their participation is a vital component of the total educational process. Parents and the school form a team effort to provide quality services to exceptional children.
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Private School Students
Transition Information
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An online Texas "Transition and Employment Guide" is located on the Transition in Texas website. To use the guide, go to Transition & Employment Guide
Additional information may be obtained by contacting: Mandi Barnes
Transition/Employment Services Designee
Phone: (254) 299-6750
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Legal Framework
| Legal Framework |
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The Legal Framework is a summary of state and federal requirements for special education. In addition, by entering LVISD's ID number (161906) you will be able to see local policy pages aligned to state and federal laws.
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Supplemental Special Education Services
| Supplemental Special Education Services |
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Supplemental Special Education Services (SSES) are on-line accounts for eligible Families of students with eligible disabilities can use the on-line accounts to obtain special For more information, please click here.
Los Servicios de Educación Especial Complementaria (SSES, por sus siglas en inglés)
Para obtener más información, haga clic aquí. |
Special Education Acronyms
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Child Find
| Child Find |
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The special education program in La Vega I.S.D. is ready, willing, and able to serve all eligible students. All children with disabilities residing in the state, regardless of the severity of their disabilities, and who are in need of special education and related services, must be identified, located, and evaluated.
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