Access to Quality Planning Document for South Dakota's Special Schools

The planning process for the South Dakota School for the Deaf and the South Dakota School for the Visually Handicapped was based on the same principles which guided the development of Access to Quality for higher education. It was a participative process that included the superintendents and Board of Regents Executive Director with review and input from faculty, staff and the schools' Advisory Councils. The process began in September 1994 with a draft report to the South Dakota Board of Regents in June 1995.

The document includes a chapter on the environment in which the special schools operate, as well as assumptions in a variety of areas. Assumptions were grouped into nine broad categories: Mission and Planning, Statewide, Governance, Student, Program, Staffing, Finance, Facilities and Intergovernmental Relations. In each category, statements reflect what exists or is expected to exist in the immediate future.

The next section lists eleven directions which are to be pursued. The directions include: access to appropriate services, quality of programs and services, maximizing delivery statewide, creating quality teaching and learning environments, development of centers of excellence, resource management, collaborative relationships, partnerships with parents, increased public understanding of vision and hearing loss, competitive compensation for employees and maintenance of facilities and equipment. The directions are ambitious and reflect a standard of excellence. Some of the directions will require additional resources to implement and maintain. The course, however, is clear. The rate of progress may be affected by resource availability.

The last section identifies benchmarks by which progress in the chosen directions will be measured. The directions identified are intended to provide appropriate educational programs and services for students with sensory losses, given the nature of South Dakota and its resources. By observing progress on the benchmarks, we will have a means of determining our success in fulfilling the role and mission of the two special schools.

DIRECTIONS

Ensure that all resident children who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind or visually impaired have access to appropriate education programs and services.
1. Work with parents and local school districts to increase understanding of the components of an appropriate education.
2. Work with parents and local school districts to increase understanding of the educational options available for students with vision or hearing loss.
3. Maintain the cooperative agreement between the Board of Regents and the Board of Education, which clarifies the relationship between the special schools and the Office of Special Education.
4. Provide evaluations of students by individuals or teams who are trained and experienced in the evaluation of children with hearing or vision loss.
5. Provide information to local school districts which may assist in identifying and initiating services to children with hearing or vision loss.
6. Provide direct services to parents of preschool children with vision or hearing loss.
7. Provide consultative service to local school districts for students who are best served in their local schools.
8. Provide resource materials to parents and local schools.
9. Facilitate transitions between the special schools and local school districts.
Ensure the quality of educational programs and services for children who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or visually impaired.
1. Maintain accreditation with the Department of Education and Cultural Affairs.
2. Seek and/or maintain other appropriate accreditations through such entities as North Central Association, National Accreditation Council for Schools and Agencies Serving the Blind and Conference of Educational Administrators Serving the Deaf.
3. Promote regular review of curriculum, teaching practices, and adaptive equipment.
4. Provide the adaptive skills necessary for students who are blind or visually impaired.
5. Provide the communication skills necessary for children who are deaf or hard of hearing.
6. Provide opportunities for students to learn about themselves and their disability.
7. Provide students with appropriate opportunities to interact with their age peers, deaf/visually impaired peers, and within the community at large.
8. Provide access to adaptive technology which will enhance the educational program and prepare students for adulthood and future independence.
9. Require and provide for continued professional development for faculty and staff.
Maximize the delivery of services statewide through outreach programs designed to meet the identified needs of students, parents and local school districts.
1. Evaluate the service delivery options that will meet the educational needs of deaf and blind children in a rural state.
2. Conduct periodic needs assessments and use the information gathered for planning to meet critical needs.
3. Utilize the professional staff at the SDSD and SDSVH to provide local school districts access to expertise in assessment, practice, and materials.
4. Provide ongoing staff development and training sessions for parents and local school district personnel.
5. Explore the use of distance technology to increase access to professional staff.
6. Secure support for summer programming to meet the needs of children for uninterrupted educational programs.
7. Secure support for summer programming to meet the needs of students enrolled in public schools for special skills instruction and experiences with other children who are deaf or blind.
Create a quality teaching and learning environment on each campus that promotes student growth through education and related experiences, both in the classroom and within the community.
1. Provide a learning/living environment which is safe, nurturing, and consistent with academic, emotional, and developmental needs of children.
2. Provide an environment that integrates academic and living experiences for students in meaningful ways.
3. Adapt instruction and/or environment to meet individual learning needs of students.
4. Provide opportunities for students to participate in a variety of social, cultural, and recreational activities within community settings.
5. Provide opportunities for students to develop an understanding of their own vision or hearing loss.
6. Provide students who are deaf with opportunities to develop an understanding of deaf culture.
7. Provide additional learning options through dual enrollment whenever appropriate for an individual student.
8. Foster a transdisciplinary team approach to focus available resources on the child and ensure continuity and communication between the school program and residential or home setting.
9. Provide opportunities for both students and staff to develop individual strengths.
10. Create a community of learners.
11. Create an environment in which every student is stimulated, inspired, motivated and meets with success every day.
12. Create an environment in which students are actively involved in their own learning.
13. Ensure students have ample opportunities to apply their learning to real-life situations.
Develop the special schools as centers of teaching excellence, modeling successful practices and programs for students with vision and hearing loss.
1. Ensure all teachers in the special schools have the knowledge and skills necessary to provide instruction to students with special needs.
2. Recruit, hire, and retain faculty and staff with the highest level of training and experience in the fields of deafness and blindness.
3. Ensure all faculty and staff see a clear and positive relationship between what they do and the success of students.
4. Support each teacher as a member of a collegial team.
5. Establish continual professional development of faculty and staff as the norm.
6. Set high standards for excellence for both students and staff.
7. Provide access to practical adaptive technology.
8. Focus decision making on the best available data/research in education, special education, and the education of the deaf and blind.
9. Provide instructional leadership which is continually focused on student learning and the improvement of instruction.
10. Establish parents as full partners in the educational process.
11. Create opportunities for students to associate with successful individuals who have vision or hearing loss.
12. Demonstrate compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and Rehabilitation Act in employment practices and accessibility.
13. Serve as a model of excellence for teacher education students, practicum students, and public school personnel.
14. Provide leadership in addressing educational and employment issues that pertain to the deaf and blind.
15. Increase the shared information, cooperative programs, and explore other opportunities for expanding exchange of "best practices" with peer schools in our region and throughout the country.
Execute responsible and accountable management of allocated resources.
1. Conduct all personnel functions in accordance with all applicable laws, regulations, and policies of the state of South Dakota, the South Dakota Board of Regents, and federal mandates such as the Americans with Disabilities Act.
2. Engage in proactive planning to ensure resources are used to meet high priority goals for the two special schools.
3. Prepare and submit budget requests to the South Dakota Board of Regents that reflect the total needs of the two special schools.
4. Conduct fiscal transactions in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, and policies of the State of South Dakota and the South Dakota Board of Regents.
5. Establish a communication network within each of the special schools to facilitate planning, implementation, and evaluation of all major school functions.
6. Establish ongoing communication with the schools' constituents including parents, disability communities, agencies, and the general public.
Foster collaborative relationships with the Department of Education and Cultural Affairs, local school districts, and state universities, as well as other agencies, service providers, and consumer groups.
1. Continue participation in the Board of Regents/Board of Education cooperative agreement.
2. Continue interagency agreements with SBVI, State Library and other groups as appropriate.
3. Provide training and support in team building skills for outreach personnel.
4. Maintain viable and active Advisory Councils.
5. Increase appropriate interactions between the special schools and schools of education at the public universities and private colleges.
6. Work cooperatively with college and university programs in expanding understanding of the educational needs of children who are blind or deaf.
Foster collaborative partnerships with parents/guardians in the education of children who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or visually impaired.
1. Increase faculty and staff contacts with parents.
2. Establish parents as key players on the child's planning team.
3. Provide opportunities for parent participation in educational and recreational activities with their children and with other families.
Increase public understanding of vision and hearing loss and appreciation for quality educational programs for children.
1. Strengthen public information efforts regarding vision and hearing loss.
2. Take advantage of opportunities to work with educational and health related groups and provide information and resources.
3. Increase the visibility of the special schools in South Dakota.
4. Focus on the expertise available only through the two schools and the resource they provide to the state as a whole.
5. Engage in the expansion of knowledge in the fields of deafness and blindness, especially as it pertains to the education and well-being of children.
Seek competitive compensation for all classifications of employees at the special schools.
1. Pay competitive salaries based on the markets from which we recruit.
2. Provide competitive benefit packages.
3. Ensure that faculty and staff are provided with resources necessary to function efficiently and professionally.
4. Develop a consistent salary policy and pay ranges for those employees not covered by the COHE contract.
5. Provide personal and professional support for all employees.
Provide and maintain appropriate facilities, equipment, and other resources for the special schools.
1. Seek funding for maintenance and repair to maintain the infrastructure of the campuses.
2. Integrate current technology into the facilities with provisions for future expansion.
3. Maintain the campus facilities to support a positive school climate.
4. Create comfortable and functional educational and living environments for children.

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