Program offers help to students with disabilities

With school starting for most Santa Clarita Valley students today, districts are encouraging parents and community members who know of a child who may have special needs to contact their local school district office.

The Santa Clarita Valley Special Education Local Plan Area, or SELPA, is a consortium of the Castaic, Newhall, Saugus, Sulphur Springs and William S. Hart Union High School districts, which seeks to provide special education services for students with identified disabilities from birth to age 22.

Many special needs children will benefit from the early intervention services or special education offered at various SCV school sites, said Michele Hill, secretary of the Santa Clarita Valley SELPA.

If referred to special education, a child will be assessed to determine the disability and its impact on school performance to determine eligibility for special education services.

Hill added that students with any of the following disabilities may be eligible for special education services: autism, hearing impairment, deaf-blindness, emotionally disturbed, speech and language impairment, intellectual disability, orthopedic impairment, learning disability, traumatic brain injury and other health impairment.

All assessments are followed by a meeting in which parents and staff determine eligibility, specific goals, placement and objectives, Hill said, before adding that parent permission is required for all services.