Accurate student lists for this spring’s computer-based Maine Educational Assessment (MEA) for Mathematics and English Language Arts/Literacy will depend on ongoing collaboration between the Maine DOE and the local school districts.
Continue reading “Student data needed for alternate math and ELA/literacy assessment”
Administrative Letter: 4
Policy Code: KLM
To: Superintendents of Schools, Business Managers, Directors of Special Education
From: William H. Beardsley, Acting Commissioner
Date: January 13, 2016
Re: Use of Federal Funds to Provide Food or Beverages
The Maine Department of Education has received a number of questions regarding the use of federal funds to provide food and beverages at meetings and conferences. Generally, the use of federal funds for food and beverages is discouraged. The documents posted at http://www2.ed.gov/policy/fund/guid/gposbul/gposbul.html are the federal government’s advisory on this topic.
Continue reading “Use of federal funds to provide food or beverages”
Administrative Letter Number: 2
Policy Code: BG/CH
To: Superintendents of Schools, Business Managers/Bookkeepers
From: William H. Beardsley, Acting Commissioner
Date: January 13, 2016
Re: Correction to Administrative Letter #2 2015 – Special Purpose Private School Tuition Rates
The MUSER citation and following explanatory text of the second paragraph of Administrative Letter #2 for 2015 is incorrect.
For a student who is in 9th grade or higher or 16 years of age or older, at least once during each school year (usually during the annual IEP review meeting), the IEP Team must review the transition plan portion of the student’s IEP (Section 8).
The Maine DOE is offering important guidance regarding parental consent for evaluation. Before a school administrative unit (SAU) may conduct an evaluation (e.g., intellectual testing, psychological evaluation, or speech/language testing) of a student, it must first obtain the signed, written consent of the student’s parent. In making an informed decision whether to provide consent, the parent is entitled to know the areas to be evaluated and the purpose of the evaluation (how the evaluation results will be used).
In an effort to better meet the needs of children who are in the legal custody of the Department of Health and Human Services, who are placed residentially by that agency in an out-of-state program, and who are receiving special education services, the Maine Department of Education will be assuming responsibility for overseeing the educational programming for those children as the State is responsible for them.
The Maine Department of Education has developed a set of frequently asked questions about revocation of consent for continued special education services. These answers are included in the already existing resource here.
Continue reading “New FAQs regarding special education services”
When a child with a disability is placed by his or her Individualized Educational Plan (IEP) Team in an out-of-unit placement, the Maine Unified Special Education Regulation Birth to Age Twenty (MUSER) Section IX.3.H requires the IEP Team to reconvene 30 days subsequent to the date the child begins to attend school, where he child has been placed, to review the IEP and make any revisions required.
Continue reading “Timeline for review of out-of-unit placement”
The following press release from United States Department of Education reflects Maine policy and continued mission in many aspects as the Department continues to review policy and guides school districts on the IDEA Law.
To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the U.S. Education Department is releasing guidance aimed at ensuring that America’s 6 million children and youth with disabilities have the same opportunity for a quality education as their nondisabled peers.
The Maine DOE is proposing a refinement to two sections of Rule Chapter 101.
