Burlington SPED PAC homepage

	Helpful website Links
State - Laws and Regulations:
	Special Education Regulations Massachusetts state special education regulations (603 CMR 28.00) on the Massachusetts Department of Education (DOE) web site.

	Special Education Law Massachusetts General Laws (M.G.L.) Chapter 71B, used to be known as Chapter 766

	Student Record Regulations Accessing student records, our state regulation

Federal - Laws and Regulations:
	Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004: Regulations (IDEA 2004) Part B HTML \| PDF (Approved August 3, 2006 and Published August 14, 2006)

	IDEA 2004 Law

	No Child Left Behind (NCLB), on US Department of Education web site
	NCLB, on Wrightslaw web site

	The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), is the federal regulation.
	Articles from Wrightslaw on FERPA
	Model Notification of Rights for Elementary and Secondary Schools

	Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 Regulation
	Section 504 articles on Wrightslaw web site

Departments of Education:
	U.S. Department of Education (US DOE) Monitoring Report for Massachusetts

	Massachusetts Department of Education (DOE) - Special Education Has many helpful publications regarding special education, in addition to the SPED regulations (listed above): Requirements for the Participation of Students with Disabilities in MCAS, Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks, A Parent's Guide to Special Education Manual, I EP Process Guides ( format). The DOE is also responsible for Problem Resolution of IEP or lack of following the law/regs. DOE Advisories are memos by the MA DOE, these are memos that clarifies a lot of misunderstandings at the school district level about the school obligations under the laws.
Advocacy Organizations:
	Federation for Children with Special Needs web site A resource for parents who care for children with disabilities, provides information, support, and assistance to parents of children with disabilities, their professional partners, and their communities. They are committed to listening to and learning from families, and encouraging full participation in community life by all people, especially those with disabilities. They can answer questions about your child's IEP or refer you to other resources or organizations. They offer free educational courses to parents and hold a yearly conference.
	Wrights Law Yellow Pages Find educational consultants, psychologists, educational diagnosticians, health care providers, academic therapists, tutors, speech language therapists, occupational therapists, coaches, advocates, and attorneys for children with disabilities by state.
	Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates (COPAA) web site Has a Attorney/Advocates database to find COPAA members by state.
	Parent/Professional Advocacy League (PAL) An organization that promotes a strong voice for families of children and adolescents with mental health needs.
	Reed Martin Web site Educational resource for parents, advocates, attorneys and school personnel they have accurate up-to-date information & strategies to secure rights of children with disabilities.
	SPecial Needs Advocacy Network (SPAN) web site Massachusetts association of advocates and other professionals. They have a list of advocates parents can contact of assistance and parents are also welcome to attend their workshops on advocacy and presentations on special education topics, check their Program Calendar .

Special Education Parent Advisory Councils (PAC's) in Massachusetts:
	Massachusetts Association of Parent Advisory Councils (MASSPAC) web site Our PAC is a member of this organization and they provide the PAC in Massachusetts support and networking.
	Concord Special Education Parent Advisory Councils (Concord SPED PAC) web site A user friendly comprehensive site with many informative pages including: Evaluation information, IEP definition, Reviewing your IEP, What are measurable goals, Parent education materials, What to do if it's not working, etc.
	Our neighboring towns with PAC websites (underline): Arlington, Bedford, Billerica, Lexington, Reading, Wilmington, Winchester, Woburn

Local Resources:
	Burlington Public Schools web site The official Burlington schools website with links to all the Burlington schools and schools related information.
	Minute Man Arc for Human Services (MMAHS) Minute Man Arc serves infants and toddlers at risk for developmental delays and individuals of all ages with specific developmental disabilities and their families. The Agency serves the nine-town catchment area of Acton, Bedford, Boxborough, Carlisle, Concord, Lincoln, Littleton, Maynard, and Stow. In addition, numerous families from many surrounding towns, including Arlington, Burlington, Lexington, Sudbury, and Wayland.
	Wisnia-Kapp Reading Programs, Inc. (WKRP) Judith Wisnia and Associates, Inc. creators of WKRP reading programs are located right here in our town of Burlington. WKRP was started in 1990 in Boston schools, and are used in our Burlington schools. The programs have helped hundreds of children and adults overcome their reading difficulties. WKRP reading programs are provided in public and private schools along with private practitioners' offices.

	Webpage was created August, 2006, by M. Orfei \| This webpage was last modified August 28, 2006, v3, MO