■ Potential Signs of Developmental Delays and Other
Risk Factors that Could Indicate a Need for Special
Education Services
Some indications that your child may be a child with a
disability who is in need of special education are:
• Exhibition of an emotional disturbance over a long
period of time which affects your child’s ability to learn;
• Consistent problems in getting along with others;
• Difficulty communicating;
• Lack of interest or ability in age-appropriate activities;
• Resistance to change;
• Difficulty seeing or hearing that interferes with the
ability to communicate;
• Health problems that affect educational performance
including attention problems;
• Difficulty performing tasks that require reading, writing,
or mathematics; and
• When, a child who is at least three years of age but
before he or she has started school as a beginner,
scores on a developmental assessment device, on an
assessment instrument which yields a score in months,
which score indicates that the child is delayed by 25
percent of the child’s chronological age in one or more
developmental areas, or if the child is delayed in one or
more of the developmental areas, as documented by test
performance of 1.5 standard deviations below the mean
on standardized tests.
FOX CH APE L AR EA SC H OO L NE WS
ox Chapel Area
■
Section 504 – Chapter 15
In compliance with state and federal law, the school district
will provide to each protected handicapped student,
without discrimination or cost to the student or family,
those related aids, services, or accommodations which
are needed to provide equal opportunity to participate
in and obtain the benefits of the school progr am and
extracurricular activities. A protected handicapped student
must be school age with a physical or mental disability
which substantially limits or prohibits participation in
or access to an aspect of the school program. You may
request screening and evaluation for Chapter 15 services
at any time, whether or not your child is enrolled in the
district’s public school program. Requests for evaluation
and screening are to be made in writing to: Pupil Services
Department, Fox Chapel Area School District, 611 Field
Club Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15238.
■
Gifted Education – Chapter 16
In compliance with state law, services designed to meet the
unique needs of gifted students are provided. Students are
identified individually based on state law and district policy,
and those students who possess superior intelligence
scores or meet multiple criteria indicating gifted ability may
receive services. If you believe that your school-age child
may be eligible for gifted services, screening and evaluation
processes designed to assess his/her eligibility are available
to you at no cost, upon written request. You may request
screening and evaluation at any time, whether or not your
26 Fox Chapel Area
child is enrolled in the district’s public school program.
Requests for evaluation and screening are to be made in
writing to: Pupil Services Department, Fox Chapel Area
School District, 611 Field Club Road, Pittsburgh, PA
15238.
CONFIDENTIALITY
All information gathered about your child is subject to
the confidentiality provisions contained in federal and
state law. The district has policies and procedures in
effect governing the collection, maintenance, destruction,
and disclosure to third parties of this information.
For information about this, as well as the rights of
confidentiality and
access to educational
records, you may
contact, in writing:
Pupil Services
Department,
Fox Chapel Area
School District, 611
Field Club Road,
Pittsburgh, PA
15238.
PUBLIC NOTICE – STUDENT RECORDS
As a parent of a student in the Fox Chapel Area School
District, you have certain rights in regard to your child’s
school records. These rights are guaranteed by the Family
Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), 1974, and
the Pennsylvania State Board of Education Regulations.
These rights apply whether your child is exceptional or
nonexceptional.
The district protects the
confidentiality of personally
identifiable information
regarding exceptional and
protected handicapped
students in accordance with
state and federal law and the
district’s student records policy.
You have the right to review,
inspect, or obtain a copy of
your child’s records. Records
are also open to school
officials who have a legitimate
educational interest in a child. You may
make a written request for copies of your child’s records
at a fee not to exceed duplicating costs. If you believe
that any information is inaccurate or misleading, you may
challenge the contents of the records. You have the right
to refuse individual consent where such permission is
needed for releasing certain student information. Should
you feel the district is not providing these rights, you may
file a complaint with the Family Policy Compliance Office
(FPCO), U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland
Ave. S.W., Washington, D.C. 20202.