As the saying goes, a nice goal is often changed by an ugly fact. Such is the case for the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) when they missed their goal of having the final regulations for IDEA 2004 published by December 2005. The fact is that special education stakeholders have been here before when IDEA was reauthorized in 1997 and 19 months passed before the regulations were published.

It now appears the final IDEA regulations may be approved by mid-August. A draft of the final IDEA 2004 regulations was submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on May 6, 2006. OMB has 90 days to review the regulations and must go back to the DOE with comments. If OMB does not extend their review timeline and the DOE does not take issue with OMB comments, the final regulations could be ready for the opening of the 2006-2007 school year.

Are You Ready?

Although most of the provisions of IDEA 2004 became effective July 1, 2005, state departments of education usually wait for the final federal regulations before making state policy changes. The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSEP) has extended the time for states to report policy changes until July 2007. In the meantime, special education administrators must implement the law.

The following are some examples of changes in IDEA 2004 that districts should be implementing now to take full advantage of new provisions in the law that can help improve the IEP process and save time and resources:

• IEP meeting attendance. No longer are all IEP Team members required to attend an IEP meeting if the parent agrees or consents in writing.
• Making changes to the IEP. In making changes to the IEP after the annual IEP meeting for the school year, the parent and LEA may agree to not convene an IEP meeting for the purpose of modifying the IEP and instead may develop a written document to amend or modify the child’s current IEP.
• Consolidation of IEP meetings. To the extent possible, districts are encouraged to consolidate reevaluation meetings and other IEP team meetings.
• Alternative means of meeting participation. When conducting IEP team meetings and other required administrative parent conferences, the parent and district may agree to use alternative means of meeting participation, such as video conferences and conference calls.

It is no surprise to veteran special education administrators that IDEA 2004 requires additions and modifications to current special education forms and notices. Special education document development is like painting the Golden Gate Bridge – the work is never done.

I encourage you to review the titles and content of the TransACT® IDEA 2004 Parent Notifications collection. This collection of more than 30 notices was developed from a local district perspective to address the new parent notification provisions in the law. When the final regulations are published, the collection will again be submitted to Bracewell and Giuliani for legal review. Updates and revisions to the collection are provided at no cost to subscribing districts. Be prepared to open the new school year with a full collection of IDEA 2004 parent notifications in multiple languages from TransACT. Call (425) 977-2100 to arrange an on-line demonstration.

TransACT® Free & Reduced-Price Meals Parent Notifications (National School Lunch Program) now reflects updates for the 2006-2007 school year and are available in 20 languages. TransACT also provides three additional forms not available from the USDA: Notice of Eligibility, Notice of Denied Eligibility, and Temporary Approval Expiring Soon. Each notice and application is personalized to include your district’s school meal prices and contact information along with a completed federal income chart, saving you the cost of re-entering this information.

In order to continue to provide a high level of customer support, we’ve added a few new faces to our Customer Care team. Corrie Poncé, our new Customer Care Representative, will be the friendly voice you hear when you call for assistance with your account. Customers in the western United States have already started to hear from Hilary Shirey, our new Western Account Implementation Manager. We’ve also welcomed Lisa Borders as the Western Region Manager.

Poster pricing:

• 10-25 posters: $4.00 each
• 26-50 posters: $3.50 each
• More than 50 posters: $3.00 each

Shipping & Handling (UPS Ground)

• Orders between $40-74.99: $6.00
• Orders between $75-124.99: $7.00
• Orders over $125: 10% of total

To order posters, send the number of posters you’d like to order (minimum of 10) to John Boerger by e-mailing john@transact.com.

The staff at TransACT works diligently to ensure the parent notification collections accurately reflect current interpretations of NCLB and IDEA by the U.S. Department of Education. New “flexibilities” in timelines and requirements are reviewed to determine if a notice needs editing or a new notice needs to be created. For example, when the timeline for Title I paraprofessionals to be highly qualified was changed, the TransACT NCLB Annual Principal Verification was modified to reflect the extension to the end of the 2005-2006 school year. Subsequently, Secretary Spellings announced that if a state meets certain criteria, the timeline for teachers to be highly qualified could be extended to the end of the 2006-2007 school year. Such a “qualified extension” required a major revision of a revised document and we anticipate this notice being available by the end of June.

A new or edited document is made available to subscribers as soon as possible in English with translated versions soon after. Subscribers can be assured that TransACT closely monitors the changing landscape of federal programs and the impact on parents’ right to know. During the last four years, 24 notices have been revised and 16 new notices have been added to the NCLB, IDEA 2004, and GenEd collections. In addition, newly released Guidance and Policy Letters from the US Department of Education are immediately posted for your reference in the Accountability & Compliance and UDSOE Guidance folders.

Now you can become a TransACT-certified trainer. By attending the TransACT Academy, you will learn all you need to know to train your district staff on how to use the TransACT system. The two-day seminar covers everything from the basics of site navigation to creating an implementation plan for TransACT within your district. For more information or to register, please click here to download the information flyer.

Start using your district’s custom translated documents sooner, thanks to the new online quote request form for TransACT customers from our translation partner, Iverson Language Associates. Using the form, which replaces the slower faxed request, is quick and easy. Once complete, your translations can be loaded into your District Masters folder within your TransACT Parent Notification collections. For more information about translation services or to request a quote, please click here for the custom quote request form on the Iverson site.

Don’t forget to include TransACT in your budget planning for the 2006-2007 school year. Renewing your TransACT subscription gives you the peace of mind that our support of your parent communication and compliance goals will continue. Your renewal will allow you to continue to communicate effectively, consistently and confidently with your school community.

TransACT Coordinators:  Dr. Larry Parsons and Crystal West

How long have you been a TransACT subscriber?  We’ve been using TransACT since the 2000-2001 school year.

How does your district use TransACT?   It is used in diverse ways – our administrators use it as a resource for state and/or federal laws when dealing with students, parents and/or staff. Also, in Selah’s own resource section, the District has available its policy manual and bargained agreements.

Our office personnel use the “masters,” in particular, the IDEA letters (in both English and Spanish), BECCA letters, even head lice notifications to parents. The ability to switch from English to Spanish in a matter of seconds has been very beneficial and saves needed time.

What have you done to help train your staff in the use of TransACT?  When the District initially began with TransACT, Washington Association of School Administrator Assistant Executive Director John Dekker came over and trained the administrators at their summer academy. Last fall, John returned but trained office personnel, district nurses, health paraeducators, some food service personnel, maintenance supervisor, etc. In each training, searching for school-related issues in the laws/rules, and the “masters” were emphasized.

How would you describe TransACT to a colleague in another district?  Invaluable at this point. However, as many personnel as possible should be trained. There is something for everyone, but unless they are made aware of its capabilities, staff is not likely to use the program to its full potential. We would encourage on-site training and a trained support person within the District itself as a contact for users.

TransACT congratulates Dr. Larry Parsons and Crystal West and
the staff of the Selah School District for a job well done!

Steve Schultz
Systems Administrator/EduPortal® Product Specialist

My new role as Systems Administrator requires that I maintain and improve the internal TransACT systems to guarantee our customers have the best possible experience when using the TransACT® Compliance and Communication Center. I enjoy knowing that TransACT is the most effective way for our customers to satisfy their school-to-home communication needs.

Birthplace: Ashland, Wisconsin

Birth month/day: July 10

How long have you been with TransACT: 18 months

What you like most about TransACT: The drive for continual excellence in ourselves and our products.

Favorite school subject: Science

Favorite things to do outside of work: Spend time with my wife and two daughters

Favorite band or music: Alternative/Rock/Metal

Famous persons you’d like to have dinner with (living or not): Albert Einstein

Famous vacation spot: Las Vegas

What you wanted to be when you grew-up: Astronaut