AmeriCorps Volunteers – Make a Difference in Your Community

Would you like to provide support to your community?  AmeriCorps is committed to answering the unmet needs of the communities it serves. 

UMKC-IHD’s Community Support Navigators is an AmeriCorps Program Site providing mentoring support to individuals with disabilities and their families.  AmeriCorps members will disseminate information, provide mentoring, and host training for individuals with developmental disabilities and their families, in order to strengthen their community connections and involvement.

MPACT is Missouri ’s PTI and is hosting six Community Support Navigators AmeriCorps members to serve in six communities across the state of Missouri .  MPACT provides training and one on one mentoring for parents of children who have disabilities. MPACT trainings focus on Special Education process, effective advocacy and disability specific resources and information. MPACT serves parents across the state through regional offices, their website and their e-newsletter.

Community Support Navigators AmeriCorps members receive a modest living allowance and earn an educational award, which can be used to pay back student loans or go to the college of their choice.  AmeriCorps is an opportunity to make a big difference in your life and in the lives of those around you.  It’s a chance to apply your skills and ideals toward helping others and meeting critical needs in the community. 

If you would like to serve your community by becoming one of MPACT’s Community Support Navigators please contact the MPACT  at (800) 743-7634 for an application.

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IDEA/Proposed Federal IDEA Regulations

The U. S. Department of Education has posted for comments proposed changes to the IDEA regulations.  The notice of proposed rulemaking covers the areas of parental revocation of consent for special education services, state monitoring practices, representation by non-attorneys in due process hearings, and allocations of funds to districts who are not serving any children with disabilities.

Comments must be submitted to the U. S. Secretary of Education on or before July 28, 2008.

The regulations and background information can be found at http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdf/E8-10522.pdf.

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State Performance Plan and OSEP's Evaluation of Missouri's Part B Program

Source: Heidi Atkins Lieberman, Assistant Commissioner

Intended Audience: Directors of Special Education, Special Education Contacts

Missouri received notification on June 6, 2008, that the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) has completed its evaluation of Missouri's performance and has identified Missouri in the determination category of "Meets Requirements."  For an explanation of the Determinations process, you should review the SELS messages from last June which was the first year of Determinations.  See SELS messages dated June 11, 2007; June 20, 2007; and, June 22, 2007, by going to the SELS Archive at http://dese.mo.gov/divspeced/Listserv_Archives.html. 

To view the Determination letter to Missouri, Response Table, and Explanation of Determination go to http://dese.mo.gov/divspeced/SPPpage.html (under the OSEP and DESE Letters Section).

Missouri's State Performance Plan (SPP), required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), provided measurable and rigorous targets for Missouri in the area of 20 required indicators identified by OSEP.  On February 1, 2008, Missouri filed our Annual Performance Report (APR) with OSEP; this reported the state's performance on the indicators and targets.  Go to our website to view:

SPP - http://dese.mo.gov/divspeced/DataCoord/PDF/MOPartBSPP.pdf    

APR - http://dese.mo.gov/divspeced/DataCoord/PDF/MOPartBAPRfinal408.pdf

The APR of each state underwent an evaluation process by OSEP these last few months.  This evaluation involved a review of Missouri's performance on all of the indicators, as well as, a review of the state's ability to provide valid, reliable, and timely data for each of the indicators.

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End of Course Exams/FAQ 

Source: Heidi Atkins Lieberman, Assistant Commissioner 

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Division of School Improvement, has posted a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document about the end of course exams. This document provides general information about the exam process and covers all students. You can review the FAQ at: http://www.dese.mo.gov/divimprove/assess/documents/EOCFAQ.pdf.

Education of Homeless Children with Disabilities Q&A

Source: Margaret Strecker, Director, Compliance

The U. S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs
(OSEP) has posted a Questions and Answers document addressing services
for homeless children with disabilities on their website.  The document
can be viewed at
http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/osep/policy.html. 

Examples of topics addressed in the document include: a definition of
homelessness and rights a homeless child receives under the
McKinney-Vento Act; Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
requirements relating to child find, evaluations, and individualized
education programs (IEPs); surrogate parents for unaccompanied homeless
youth; and, information about schools of origin and educational
placements for homeless children with disabilities under IDEA.

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Medically Necessary Therapies and the MO HealthNet Managed Care Program

IMPORTANT NOTICE 

Has your child or a child that you know been denied access to medically necessary therapies while enrolled in the Missouri HealthNet managed care program? 

We have learned that that there have been multiple incidents of Missouri children being denied medically necessary therapies by MO HealthNet managed care plans. These decisions are based on an overly narrow view of "medical necessity" that restricts access to care and violates federal and state law as well as state contracts. Children and their providers are being required to demonstrate improvement, rather than "medical necessity," in order to receive therapy services. The state and its contractors are required to provide access to services for children "to correct or ameliorate defects and physical and mental illnesses and conditions." This means that the child's condition does not have to be cured or improved by the therapy. Instead, children should receive services through MO HealthNet that minimize regression of conditions or help children attain, maintain, or regain functional capacity. The law also prevents denials of health care services solely because of the diagnosis, type of illness or condition. If you know a child with special health care needs enrolled in the MO HealthNet managed care program who is not receiving the therapies that they need, please contact: 

Advocates for Family Health (formerly the MC+ Consumer Advocacy Project) 

Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, Inc. 

4232 Forest Park Avenue St. Louis, MO 63108 

(314) 534-1263 1-800 444-0514, Ext. 1251  

www.lsem.org  

e-mail: info@lsem.org 

or 

Advocates for Family Health (formerly the MC+ Advocacy Project) 

Legal Aid of Western Missouri, Inc 

1125 Grand Blvd., #1900 Kansas City, MO 64106 

(816) 474-6750

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Floods - Autism Org Offers Support to Families Affected by Midwest Floods 

AutismCares Offers Support to Families Affected by Midwest Floods New York, NY

AutismCares is actively seeking families affected by autism who are also victims of the flooding in Iowa, Wisconsin, Missouri, Illinois, and other Midwestern states, and invites those families to call the Autism Response Team at 1-888-Autism2 or email autismcares@autismspeaks.org to receive assistance. 

Families may also register directly at www.autismcares.org . Registration will enable AutismCares to contact families to provide support services. AutismCares provides support for the costs associated with housing, utilities, insurance premiums, medical care, prescriptions, daycare, automobile repair, funeral expenses and other items or events for eligible families on a case-by-case basis. 

AutismCares is a consortium of leading autism organizations formed in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina to coordinate relief efforts for the thousands of families who were victims of the disaster. AutismCares subsequently assisted families displaced by Hurricanes Rita and Wilma and the California wildfires and now supports all families affected by autism who fall victim to natural disasters and catastrophic life events. Children with autism often require intensive biomedical and behavioral therapies and thoroughly planned routines. AutismCares has created a network to support families whose struggle with autism is intensified by natural disaster, forced relocation and scarce resources. 

To qualify for assistance, a family must have experienced one or more of the following major life events within the previous 90 days: natural disaster (fire, flood, hurricane, tornado, severe storm or earthquake); death or critical illness or injury in the immediate nuclear family; a violent crime; loss of home through foreclosure, eviction or natural disaster; or loss of job. 

After Hurricane Katrina struck, AutismCares directly assisted over 80 families, providing housing, furniture, toys, groceries and other essential items. "AutismCares was born out of the compassion that members of the autism community have for one another," said Peter Bell, executive vice president of Autism Speaks and executive committee member of AutismCares. "Many of us know firsthand how challenging it is to care for a child with autism. Add a natural catastrophe that strips a family of everything it has and it's a recipe for disaster." 

Monetary donations to AutismCares may be made online at www.autismcares.org. AutismCares is funded by contributions from its member organizations, as well as individuals. One hundred percent of donations are distributed to families in need. Visit www.autismcares.org for additional information about: the AutismCares relief initiative; current newsroom information; aid coordination for families living with autism; online registration forms. 

Autism leadership groups participating in relief efforts through AutismCares include: Autism Speaks www.autismspeaks.org); The Daniel Jordon Fiddle Foundation (www.djfiddlefoundation.org); The Doug Flutie Jr. Foundation (www.dougflutiejrfoundation.org); The Help Group (www.thehelpgroup.org); SafeMinds (www.safeminds.org); The Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center (SARRC) (www.autismcenter.org); Talk About Curing Autism - TACA (www.TalkAboutCuringAutism.org); TalkAutism (www.talkautism.org); and Unlocking Autism (www.unlockingautism.org).

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