Special Education

Special Education Department

Amie Talarico, Director of Special Education, talaricoa@ltsd.org

Kelly Carey, Certified School Psychologist, careyk@ltsd.org

Brink Powell, Special Education Department Secretary, powellb@ltsd.org

Diane Kilmer, Medical Access Billing Secretary, kilmerd@ltsd.org

Attention Trail Families:

The Bureau of Special Education is conducting Cyclical Monitoring at the Lackawanna Trail School District. If you are a parent with a student who has an IEP,  you will receive information about a parent survey through your child’s case manager. The letter is also here on the LTSD Facebook page and our website. Please use the link to fill out the survey if you have a student with an IEP. Feel free to contact the Special Education Office if you need assistance @ 570-945-5184 and Dial 1 for special education.
To complete the parent survey, parents should go online at http://apps.leaderservices.com/ParentSurvey .
To complete the student survey, students should go online at http://apps.leaderservices.com/StudentSurvey .

Attention Trail Families:

Please review this letter for important information about health insurance eligibility for your children.  “As of April 1, 2023, DHS must end MA and/or CHIP coverage if a person does not complete their renewal or if they have income or other changes that make them ineligible for MA or CHIP at the time of their renewal.”

Meeting Protocol for Inclement Weather

Early Dismissal – Meetings scheduled for before the dismissal will be held as scheduled.  Meetings scheduled after the dismissal will be rescheduled by the case manager.
Two or Three Hour Delay – Meetings scheduled for before the delay start time will be rescheduled by the case manager.  Meetings scheduled after the delay start time will be held as scheduled.
Traditional Snow Days – All meetings whether in person, virtual, or phone conference are canceled.  Case managers will be in touch with the family to reschedule.
Flexible Instructional Days – Meetings will take place as scheduled.  In person meetings will be changed to virtual meetings.  If the family is unable to participate virtually they should contact their child’s case manager to reschedule.
Advanced Notice Virtual Instruction Days – Meetings will take place as scheduled.  In person meetings will be changed to virtual meetings.   If the family is unable to participate virtually they should contact their child’s case manager to reschedule.

ACT 55 of 2022

On July 8, 2022, Governor Tom Wolf signed Act 55 of 2022 into law.

This Act permits the following for the 2022-23 school year:

• A student with a disability who was enrolled during the 2021-22 school year and turned age 21 (either during the 2021-22 school year or between the end of the 2021-22 and the beginning of the 2022-23 school year) may attend a school entity during the 2022-23 school year and receive services as outlined in their most recent Individualized Education Program (IEP) with all the protections under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

To qualify for an additional year, a student had to be enrolled in one of the following school entities in Pennsylvania during the 2021-22 school year: a school district, intermediate unit, area career and technical school, charter school, cyber charter school, regional charter school, approved private school, or chartered school for the education of the deaf and blind.

Parents/guardians and students interested in the above option for the 2022-23 school year must submit this Act 55 of 2022 Student Enrollment Notification Form to the school entity that the student will attend in the 2022-23 school year on or before August 1, 2022. Do not submit the form to the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE).

Special Education Comprehensive Plan

Summary and Updates

The Special Education Comprehensive Plan is a subset of the Lackawanna Trail School District Comprehensive Plan. The current plan began on July 1, 2018, and was set to expire on June 30, 2021. The LTSD is in Cohort III for Special Education Planning. The Special Education Plan runs on a separate schedule than the larger district level plan. Due to the COVID 19 Pandemic, all districts in Cohort III will now submit their plan in Spring 2022, which puts us in line with the larger district timelines.

 

The Special Education Comprehensive Plan consists of the following:

  • A description of how we identify students with special needs. 
  • A description of special education programs offered by the district, as well as programs and placements we utilize outside of our district.
  • A description of practices used to ensure students receive their education in the Least Restrictive Environment.
  • Explanations of how Positive School Wide Behavior and Multi-Tiered Systems of Support act as pre-referral systems and support students with and without disabilities. 
  • A description of the related services provided by the district. 
  • A description of professional development related to special education.
  • A list of the strengths and highlights of our programming. 

 

Special Education Comprehensive Plan 2021-2024