OSDE - SES July 29, 2021 - External

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Announcement

ACT Streamlines Accommodations Eligibility Requirements for Students with IEPs, 504 Plans

ACT

ACT Streamlines Accommodations Eligibility Requirements for Students with IEPs, 504 Plans Policy Change for 2021-22 School Year Expedites Process to Save Educators, Families, Students Time

IOWA CITY, Iowa—ACT, the nonprofit developer of the ACT test, today announced plans to increase accessibility to the ACT test for students with disabilities by streamlining accommodations eligibility requirements. ACT will approve allowable accommodations already included in students’ Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) or 504 plans.

Beginning with the 2021-22 testing year, students who already receive accommodations at their school under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act will automatically be eligible to receive the allowable testing accommodations when they register for the ACT with accommodations.

The IDEA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act contain rigorous requirements that public schools must follow in determining who is an eligible student with a disability and what accommodations eligible students need to access their education. This includes what accommodations are needed to access classroom and standardized tests, like the ACT test.

“Students with disabilities already face many barriers in their lives, and we don’t want the accommodations process for taking the ACT to be one of them,” said ACT CEO Janet Godwin. “This policy change simplifies and expedites the process for requesting accommodations, so that students can focus on learning all that they can in school and showing what they know on test day.”

In conjunction with the policy change, ACT is updating its system for requesting accommodations to require less information and documentation to support requests submitted on behalf of students with a current IEP or 504 plan.

“By aligning to a standard that is already applied in schools where the majority of our students with accommodations are learning, we simplify and expedite the process for students, families, and educators,” said ACT Senior Director of Accessibility Katie Featherston.

While this change benefits the majority of students who test with accommodations, ACT will continue to offer accommodations to test-takers who do not have a current IEP or 504 plan. The organization will continue to use the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standard to determine whether there is a “physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity” and whether the requested accommodations are reasonable for the ACT test.

 

More information about the policy change and process for requesting accommodations, please click here. can be found here.


EDPlan Section 504 New Interface Release

The first phase of EDPlan’s new look will be released Friday, July 30. This release will include the new 504 process. All other EDPlan processes will remain the same, only the 504 process module will be updated. An updated 504 user guide has been posted to the Documents section on EDPlan’s main menu, under Help Links. The EDPlan training webinar schedule is also posted in Help Links.

Trainings/Webinars

EDPlan Webinar Trainings for August

EDPlan Administrator Training – Training is for EDPlan Administrators and will cover the new EDPlan as well as Calendars, Reporting Periods, Adding and Removing staff, Caseloads and Impersonation rights.

Introduction to EDPlan – Training is for anyone new to EDPlan and is a pre-requisite to other trainings by EDPlan.  This is also suggested for experienced EDPlan users to see and understand how to navigate the New EDPlan

IEP Process – This training is for EDPlan users responsible for creating IEP paperwork in EDPlan.  This will cover organizing the student caseload, IEP at a Glance, Creating Contact Logs, Batch Printing, etc.

Eligibility Process – Training is for users responsible for Eligibility Determination.  Training will cover the navigation and paperwork requirements to finalize an Eligibility Determination in EDPlan.  We will complete a RED, Parent Consent, documenting assessments, completing the MEEGS and running reports to organize due dates.

504 Process – Training is for users responsible for 504 Eligibility and the 504 Student Plans.  Training will cover the 504 Eligibility Process and creating a 504 Student Plan as well as running reports, batch printing, etc. 

The webinar schedule and registration link are located in EdPlan on the Main page at the bottom under Documents.  Click on the Help Links tab and click on EdPlan August Webinar Schedule. 

Once the document is opened, you can choose which date and time works best.  To register for a particular webinar, click on the Registration Link next to the one you want to attend.


Youth Engagement Transition Initiative

When: Tuesday, August 3, 2021 at 2:00 PM

NTACT:C is in the process of establishing the Youth Engagement Transition Initiative (YETI); a national youth engagement and leadership advisory group. As an initial step in this process, NTACT:C in partnership with a core advisory group of youth/young adults is hosting an informational and outreach webinar on August 3, 2021 at 2:00 PM. We encourage state and local professionals who work with students, youth, and young adults to participate in this webinar.

 Register for this webinar, by clicking here!                                                                                   If you have any questions regarding this event, please contact Michael Stoehr.


Special Education Leadership Webinar Series

Leadership Retreat

When: August 17, 2021 from 3:00PM - 4:30PM CST

Discussing topics such as organizational leadership, strategic analysis, and goal setting, this multi-session webinar series will provide special education directors and other district program staff the opportunity to seek out what it means to be a part of an organization. Questions such as “what currently is”, in an organization, and also, “what currently could/should be” for it to achieve its mission will be the center point of discussion. Participants will come away from the sessions with the knowledge and understanding to help fulfill their goal of providing quality education to all students.

 For more information about the webinar series, view the flyer here.                                     To register for the fourth session in the series on August 17, 2021, click here.                   The zoom link you will need for the session is here

Any questions about the webinar can be directed to Abby Johnson

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