Exceptional Student Services

Paradise Schools’ Exceptional Student Services department oversees programming for students with disabilities and maintains compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Paradise Schools provides a free, appropriate, public education (FAPE) to students with disabilities in accordance with state and federal statutes and regulations. 

Child Find

Child Find is a component of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA 2004), that requires Public Education Agencies to locate, identify, and evaluate all children with disabilities aged birth through 21, located within their geographic boundaries who are in need of early intervention or special education services.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and its implementing regulations require that all children with disabilities who are in need of special education and related services, regardless of the severity of their disability, are identified, located, and evaluated. [20 U.S.C. § 1412(a)(3); 34 C.F.R. § 300.111(a)]

Arizona State Board of Education rules (found in the Arizona Administrative Code) require that:

•  “identification (screening for possible disabilities) shall be completed within 45 calendar days after entry of each preschool or kindergarten student and any student enrolling without appropriate records of screening, evaluation, and progress in school, or after notification to the [school] by parents of concerns regarding developmental or educational progress by their child aged 3 years through 21 years.” [A.A.C. R7-2-401(D)(5)]

• “If a concern about a student is identified through screening procedures or through review of records, the public education agency shall notify the parents of the student of the concern within 10 school days and inform them of the public education agency procedures to follow up on the student’s needs.” [A.A.C. R7-2-401(D)(8)]

•  “For a student transferring into a school, the public agency shall review enrollment data and educational performance in the prior school. If there is a history of special education for a student not currently eligible for special education, or poor progress, the name of the student shall be submitted to the administrator for consideration of the need for a referral for a full and individual evaluation or other services. [A.A.C. R7-2-401(D)(7)]

• Charter schools identify, locate and evaluate all children with disabilities within their populations served who are in need of special education and related services.

If you know of a child residing within the community who is disabled, regardless of the severity of the disability, and who is in need of special education and/or related services, please contact our Exceptional Student Services Dept at 623-546-7201.