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On November 29, 1975, then-President Gerald Ford signed into law the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (Public Law 94-142). In adopting this landmark civil rights measure, Congress opened public school doors for millions of children with disabilities and laid the foundation of the country’s commitment to ensuring that children with disabilities have opportunities to develop their talents, share their gifts, and contribute to their communities.

Camp Buckskin has been helping young people with ADD, ADHD, Learning Disabilities, Aspergers, or those who may be adopted to learn and grow for more than 50 years. We provide a structured, consistent, and supportive environment with quality instruction in traditional camp and some academic activities. Our featured Personal Growth Program works to enhance social awareness and improve social skills. Our parents are most interested in helping their children make and maintain friendships, so we work each day to accomplish this goal. In addition, we strive to improve problem solving/coping skills to help our campers become more self reliant and take on increased responsibility for themselves.

Technical Assistance Guide for Transition in the IEP Links This guide will provide technical assistance for IEP team committee members, especially special education teachers, in developing and writing transition IEP's utilizing the newly adopted South Dakota IEP transition pages.

Alexandra Codina's Monica & David (pictured) is the documentary account of a young couple with Down syndrome--their romance, their marriage, their first year together. At first blush, it sounds like the worst kind of crass exploitation (a kind of nonfiction version of The Other Sister, perhaps). But it adopts exactly the right voice and perspective--one that carefully avoids cutesiness or sympathy, but sees these two (and the people around them) exactly as they are.

The news is that a new, voluntary industry standard has been created for test-writing for all types of students. If widely adopted, it would essentially mean that tests would be written with a shared set of codes, or "tags," that create a common language describing their content. This would allow states, for instance, to switch test vendors without having to undertake a laborious translation process from one test-maker's digital "language" to another's.

As an occupational therapy practitioner, researcher, and professor, Dr. James Lenker occupies a rare vantage point in the assistive technology field. His is a perspective that encompasses a wide range of AT-related issues: device adoption and abandonment, assessment, evaluation, consumer and rehab technology and AT research. It’s a panoramic perspective with a view of the horizon in every direction and a lens on changes that are remaking the AT landscape.

Click here to register for this event What: This webinar will present a general introduction and overview of Broadband—both as a public policy agenda and as a quality of life issue for people with disabilities. The training will take a look at the unique ways in which Broadband is redefining health care, education, employment, citizenship, and community participation for people with disabilities. When: Wednesday, March 23, 2011 11:00 AM –  12:00 PM MST Presenter: Martin Sweeney -- As a parent, activist and current AT professional, Martin Sweeney has over 25 years of experience in the field of assistive technology. As a training specialist, Sweeney is part of the Center for Accessible Technology team promoting Broadband awareness, access and adoption throughout California.

Click here to register for this event What: Linda James Myers, Ph.D. will present "The Challenges of Cultural Congruence: What Every Advocate Should Know" on Thursday, June 16, from 2:00 - 3:30 p.m. Dr. Myers is a professor at The Ohio State University, past president of the Association of Black Psychologists, and chair of the Board of Trustees for the National Association for the Education of African American Children with Learning Disabilities (AACLD). This webinar will focus on the importance of cultural congruence, one of the most challenging and often least discussed issues central to the success of Black families as they seek to provide a quality education for their children. As a member of a cultural group whose ethnic and racial heritage is congruent with and supported by that dominant in this society, Euro-western white, one may assume that this prevailing cultural worldview and the subsequent educational and other social institutions created by it are universally suitable and acceptable. The assumption is often made that the prevailing cultural worldview is universally adopted and held by all Americans, particularly those who have been in this country for generations and for whom English is believed to be their first language. This webinar will explore how these assumptions have hurt non-immigrant African Americans and their progeny, particularly in terms of education, their potential for educational achievement, and the current disproportionality we see in special education. Emphasis will be placed on how advocating for a culturally congruent educational experience on behalf of Black students and their families has the potential to transform the negative educational outcomes that have plagued this population for decades. This is the first in an Equity and Ethnicity in Special Education four-part series of webinars hosted by COPAA, a non-profit organization that works to protect special education rights and secure excellence in education on behalf of the 7.1 million children with disabilities in America. When: Thursday, June 16, 2011 - 12:00 pm Mountain If you would like to register for this event or any of the four-part series, please click here. COPAA non-member registration is $65.00 for one session or $195.00 for all four sessions. The full four-part series includes: Thursday, June 16, 2011 - 2:00 pm Eastern The Challenges of Cultural Congruence: What Every Advocate for Black Students Should Know Presenter: Linda James Myers, Ph.D. Tuesday, June 21, 2011 - 2:00 pm Eastern Addressing Legal Issues of Disability and Race Discrimination Presenters: Matthew Engel, Esq., Ron Lospennato Esq. Wednesday, June 29, 2011 - 2:00 pm Eastern Representing Parents Whose Dominant Language is Other Than English Presenter: Gabriela Ruiz, Esq., Southern Legal Counsel, Inc. Thursday, July 14, 2011 - 2:00 pm Eastern Disproportionality: What are we doing about it? Presenters: Sonja Kerr, Esq. Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia (PILCOP)

The goal of the Center for Early Literacy Learning (CELL) is to promote the adoption and sustained use of evidence-based early literacy learning practices. This site has resources for early childhood intervention practitioners, parents, and other caregivers of children, birth to five years of age, with identified disabilities, developmental delays, and those at-risk for poor outcomes.

Narrowing the Achievement Gap by Expanding Time in School: What Educators Need to Consider What: Expanding the school day or year is one strategy educators are employing to try to narrow the achievement gap. How schools use that time, experts say, should be tailored to meet the needs of individual schools. At the same time, though, there are proven policies and practices schools need to adopt to reach their goals. Finding that balance is tricky. Some schools have succeeded; others have failed. As more schools move toward expanded learning time using state or federal funding, what kinds of model designs should they choose, what tools are out there to help them, and what should their expectations be? Join us for a webinar that explores what educators should consider when implementing an expanded learning time model. When: Wednesday, August 10, 2011 11:30am - 12:30 pm Mountain Also available "on demand" any time 24 hours after the event Guests: Jennifer Davis, Co-Founder & President, National Center for Time and Learning. Emily McCann, president, Citizens Schools. Free registration is now open.

Click here to register for this free webinar What: Nearly every state in the country has adopted a new set of common academic standards in mathematics and English/language arts. The new guidelines lay out fundamental changes in the skills students are expected to have. But there is a long road from understanding the standards to putting them into practice in the classroom. This webinar will let participants in on the approaches that two districts—Hillsborough County, Fla. and Cleveland —are taking as they work to educate teachers about the standards and turn them into new types of teaching and learning. Register now for this free live event! When: Tuesday, August 30, 2011 12:00pm - 1:00pm Mountain Guests: Lynn Dougherty-Underwood, director of K-12 literacy, Hillsborough County Public Schools (Fla.). Mark Baumgartner, director of professional issues, Cleveland Teachers Union.

Three minutes is all it takes to find out if a student needs extra help with reading.