It is the philosophy and position of the School Board and its administration that the primary responsibility for the administration and delivery of special education programs and services should be within the Corporation and at the school a student would regularly attend, whenever appropriate.

Further, the Board endorses a commitment to the provision of a continuum of special education programs and services to students with disabilities in cooperation with the Elkhart County Special Education Cooperative within the Corporation.

Placement options shall follow a continuum of services model to ensure that each student with a disability is provided a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE). To that end, every attempt will be made to first serve students with disabilities in the context of a regular education classroom. Other more restrictive environments such as: resource rooms, self-contained categorical classrooms, or settings outside of a Corporation school will be considered only when placement in the regular classroom has been documented by the Case Conference to be inappropriate for the student's educational needs.

20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.
511 IAC 7-27-9

Revised 2/24/03