Special Education

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education provides standards to school districts in Missouri to follow regarding finding children eligible for special education services. There are 16 categories of eligibility under which a child with a disability may be identified and provided services. 

1.    Intellectual Disability
2.    Emotional Disturbance
3.    Orthopedic Impairment
4.    Vision Impairment
5.    Hearing Impairment/Deafness
6.    Specific Learning Disability
7.    Other Health Impairment (OHI)
8.    Deaf/Blind
9.    Multiple Disabilities
10.    Autism
11.    Traumatic Brain Injury
12.    Language Impairment
13.    Sound System Disorder
14.    Speech/Fluence
15.    Speech/Voice
16.    Young Child with Developmental Delay

As a parent of a child with a disability, you have the right to:

1. Attend individualized education program (IEP) meetings and represent your child’s interests.

2. Have an advocate or expert present at IEP meetings.

3. Receive a copy of your child’s evaluation, disagree with it, and request one independent educational evaluation (IEE) at public expense.

4. Provide a written report from outside sources as part of the evaluation process.

5. Examine all education records pertaining to your child and be provided with a copy of the IEP.

6. Disagree with IEP team decisions and pursue dispute resolution procedures, including: requesting a facilitated IEP meeting, filing a child complaint with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, requesting state-paid mediation, having an impartial due process hearing, and appealing the due process decision to the court.

7. Participate in reviews of the IEPs and in any decision to change any aspects of the IEP, as well as receive Prior Written Notice for a change in your child’s educational placement or the provision of a free and appropriate public education.

8. Have your child placed in the least restrictive environment and in a general education classroom to the greatest extent appropriate.

9. Request an accommodation to provide effective communications if you have limited English language proficiency.

10. A free appropriate public education for your child with an IEP designed to meet your child’s unique needs, which may include, but not limited to, special education and related services, such as assistive technology devices and services; transportation; speech pathology services; audiology services; interpreting services; psychological services, including behavioral interventions; physical therapy; occupational therapy; recreation, including therapeutic recreation; counseling services, including rehabilitation counseling; orientation and mobility services; school health services; school nurse services; social work services; parent counseling and training; and, medical services for diagnostic or evaluation purposes.

11. Audio record any meeting under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) or Section 504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

This document does not confer any right or rights beyond those conferred by federal or state law and is intended for informational purposes only. For additional information, contact the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Division of Special Education at (573) 751-0699 or webreplyspeco@dese.mo.gov.

Procedural Safeguards

All responsible public agencies are required to locate, evaluate, and identify children with disabilities who are under the jurisdiction of the agency, regardless of the severity of the disability, including children attending private schools, children who live outside the district but are attending a private school within the district, highly mobile children, such as migrant and homeless children, children who are wards of the state and children who are suspected of having a disability and in need of special education even though they are advancing from grade to grade.

The St. Joseph School District assures that it will provide a free, appropriate public education (FAPE) to all eligible children with disabilities between the ages of 3 and 21 under its jurisdiction.  Disabilities include autism, deaf/blindness, emotional disorders, hearing impairment and deafness, intellectual disability, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairment, other health impairments, specific learning disabilities, speech or language impairment, traumatic brain injury, visual impairment/blindness and young child with a developmental delay.

The St. Joseph School District assures that it will provide information and referral services necessary to assist the State in the implementation of early intervention services for infants and toddlers eligible for the Missouri First Steps Program.

The St. Joseph School District assures that personally identifiable information collected, used, or maintained by the agency for the purposes of identification, evaluation, placement or provision of FAPE of children with disabilities may be inspected and/or reviewed by their parents/guardians.  Parents/guardians may request amendment to the educational record if the parent/guardian believes the record is inaccurate, misleading, or violates the privacy or other rights of their child.  Parents have the right to file complaints with the U. S. Department of Education or the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education concerning alleged failures by the district to meet the requirements of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

The St. Joseph School District has developed a Local Compliance Plan for the implementation of State Regulations for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).  This plan contains the agency’s policies and procedures regarding storage, disclosure to third parties, retention and destruction of personally identifiable information and the agency’s assurances that services are provided in compliance with the General Education Provision Act (GEPA).  This plan may be reviewed at the St. Joseph School District Offices, 1415 N 26th St., St. Joseph, Mo., Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

This notice will be provided in native languages as appropriate.

For an eligible student, when the guardian of the student has opted into services, the education team will determine the amount of the following direct service that is appropriate based on eligibility requirements and the student's educational need within the following guidelines:

• Academic Services (Basic Reading, Ready Fluency, Reading Comprehension, Written Expression, Math Problem Solving, Math Calculation) for up to a maximum of 30 minutes per week, direct service by a Certificated Teacher.

• Speech or Language Services (Speech Therapy, Language Therapy) for a maximum of 30 minutes per week, direct service by a Speech Language Pathologist or Speech Language Pathologist Assistant. 

• Expanded Core Vision for up to a maximum of 30 minutes per month, direct service by a vision specialist/certificated teacher.

• Occupational Therapy for a up to a maximum of 30 minutes per week, direct service by an Occupational Therapist or Certified Occupational Therapist Assistant. 

For additional information please contact Special Programs at 816-671-4004.