Special Populations
Mistina Johnson, Supervisor of Special Populations and Student Support
1165 S. Main St.
Milan, TN 38358
731-686-0844
johnsonmi@milanssd.org
Milan Special School District has a coordinator in each building for the special populations program. They are a liaison between classroom teachers, students, parents, and administration.
Special Populations Coordinators:
Milan Elementary School
Amanda Moore
731-686-0840
Milan Middle School
Juli Sullivan
731-686-7232
Milan High School
Molly Anderson
731-686-0841
Related Services Personnel:
Speech Language Pathologists
Meredith McKeel
Jackie Wagner
wagnerj@milanssd.org
Jennifer Harris
Occupational Therapist
Renee Nelson
Physical Therapist Assistant
Scarlet Bailey
School Psychologist
Sarah Ford
Social Worker
Melanie Morales
In keeping with the mandate from IDEA, Milan Special School District's Special Populations Department seeks to provide the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) for all students. This means the door to schools, classrooms, and school activities are open to every student and they are afforded every opportunity to be included with their non-disabled peers. A continuum of services is available for each student based on the IEP team decision on the placement of those services – either in general education or special education setting. The focus is on giving each student the help he/she needs to learn.
We Believe . . . .
All individuals are important and valued
All individuals have unique needs and abilities
All individuals can learn and succeed
All situations are unique
All individuals deserve a safe educational environment
All individuals have access to all services
All members of the community impact the learning experience of all individuals
All individuals have access to training to increase knowledge and skills
All individuals develop to their fullest potential when educators, parents, students and the community work together, thus providing a seamless learning environment
Parent Rights in English
Special Education - IDEA 619 Pre-School and IDEA Part B
Milan Special School District provides special education services for children between the ages of three and twenty-one with disabilities. The state of Tennessee has thirteen (13) disability categories in which children may qualify for Special Education services. Those categories are Specific Learning Disabilities, Autism, Intellectual Disabilities, Deaf - Blindness, Deafness, Developmental Delay, Functional Delay, Hearing Impairment, Multiple Disabilities, Speech or Language Impairment, Traumatic Brain Injury, Visual Impairment, and Intellectually Gifted. Educational needs are determined through parent interviews, the child's classroom teacher(s), medical personnel, and various individual assessments. Areas evaluated may include, but are not limited to, vision, hearing, speech and language, fine and gross motor skills, cognitive ability, and social/emotional.
Following an evaluation, if a child is determined to meet Tennessee State Eligibility Standards and is in need of special educational services, an Individual Education Plan (IEP) will be developed for your child and an appropriate program will be developed to meet your child's educational needs.
Contact Lynn Gonzales, Supervisor of Special Populations, by phone at 731-686-0844 or by email at gonzalesl@milanssd.org if you suspect your child may have a disability.
Click Here for Information about the state of Tennessee Individualized Education (IEA) Program
ACCESSING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES
Special education services are accessed through a process of Referral, Evaluation, and Eligibility.
PRESCHOOL AGED CHILDREN
Parents of children aged 3-5 should contact Milan Special Education Department (731-686-0844). The special education department is responsible for Child Find that evaluates children between the ages of 3 and 5 to determine eligibility and the need for special educational services. Educational needs are determined through parent interview and child evaluation. Areas evaluated may include, but are not limited to: vision, hearing, speech and language, fine and gross motor, cognitive/pre-academic, social/emotional and adaptive development.
SCHOOL AGED CHILDREN
The process of accessing services for school aged children begins with the child's school and teacher. If you believe your child may need special education services the first step is to contact the school to discuss your concerns with your child's teacher. Decisions involving special education are made on an individual basis according to the needs of each child. You can also contact the Milan Special School District’s Special Education Department directly (731-686-0844 ext. 2025) any time to be connected with someone who can assist with questions specific to your student.
Child Find
The Milan Special School District’s Child Find program identifies children between the ages of three and twenty-one with special education needs including developmental delays, specific learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities, speech/language impairments, other health impairments, blind, hearing impairments, orthopedic impairments, visual impairments, physical impairments, autism, emotional disturbance, multiple disabilities, intellectually gifted, and traumatic brain injury. Educational needs are determined through parent interviews and child evaluations. Areas evaluated may include, but are not limited to, vision, hearing, speech and language, motor, cognitive and adaptive development.
Following the evaluation, if a child is determined to meet Tennessee State Eligibility Standards and be in need of special education services, an Individual Education Program (IEP) will be developed for the child and a free appropriate program offered to meet the child’s educational needs.
If you suspect that your child needs additional educational support to achieve his or her educational potential, the Milan Special School District strongly encourages you to contact us. The school system will provide a free screening and possible full evaluation of your child to determine any special needs and services for which your child might be eligible. Milan Special School District adheres to all federal and state requirements as outlined in the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) or the State of Tennessee Special Education Eligibility Standards.
REFERRAL
A parent, teacher, school counselor or others involved in a student’s education, who believe that a student may require services can make a referral to the Support Team (S-Team). Referral to the S-Team will not necessarily result in referral to special education. The school district is required to seek ways to meet the unique educational needs of all children within the general education program prior to referring a child to special education. The S-Team develops a plan of instructional interventions and accommodations to meet the student’s needs within the general program. The S-Team may determine that a student will be formally referred to determine eligibility for special education service.
Response to Instruction and Intervention (RTI2) is a tiered framework for teaching that is designed to help students who are struggling academically prior to referral for a special education evaluation. The RTI2 approach begins with the frequent progress monitoring of student growth through formal assessment. The school level RTI2 team then reviews progress monitoring data. Based upon student performance, theRTI2 team could recommend a Tier II or Tier III level intervention to address the specific academic need (reading, math, written expression). If the student does not make adequate progress with additional intervention, the school RTI2 team can then make a referral for a screening or evaluation for special education. Beginning July 1, 2014, RTI2 is the only allowable process to eligibility for the identification of a Specific Learning Disability in reading, math, and written expression.
EVALUATION
When a student is formally referred, the IEP Team is formed and develops the evaluation plan and determines eligibility. Parental permission is required for all initial evaluations and placements. The school district has sixty (60) calendar days from the time permission is obtained to complete the evaluation and determine eligibility.
Appropriate school personnel will proceed after signed written consent is obtained from the parent to evaluate the current functioning level(s) of the child. The appropriate school personnel may include, but not be limited to, the following:
The parent will give input through parent information records, developmental background checklists, and/or complete forms for tests that may include parent information. The parent may also provide for review current reports or evaluations from private providers of the child if appropriate for the team to consider. The parent may also have pertinent medical documentation to share with the team for consideration.
School psychologist will perform evaluations concerning intellectual, emotional, academic, or social functioning.
Speech pathologist evaluates areas related to speech or language impairments.
Occupational therapists may evaluate for particular tasks necessary for participation or learning .
Physical therapists may evaluate gross motor skills.
English Language Learner (ELL) teachers may evaluate current levels of English language acquisition.
General education and special education teachers may assess or conduct observations and give input based on data.
Eligibility
The determination of eligibility for special education services is two-pronged. After the completion of the evaluation, the IEP team meets to determine whether the evaluation results indicate that the student has one or more disabilities and whether due to the disability the student requires special education services to make progress in the general education program. State and federal special education law set disability categories and criteria. Students must be reevaluated for eligibility every three years.
Programs and Services
Student placement and services are individualized to meet the unique needs of each student with a disability. The IEP Team develops an annual individualized education program (IEP) for each eligible student. The IEP includes a description of the student’s present level of performance, participation in and accommodations for the general education program, and special education and related services to be provided to the student.