DOE Finalizes Infant Disabilities Program

The early childhood special education community received welcome news last month that the U.S. Department of Education finalized regulations for IDEA’s Infant and Toddlers with Disabilities Program, known as Part C. IDEA Part C serves more than 340,000 infants, toddlers and their families each year.

The final Part C regulations contain numerous changes and additions, including:
  •  Transition requirements have been revised, including provisions related to notification of the local education agency (LEA) and state educational agency (SEA), timelines, an opt-out policy, the transition conference, and the transition plan.
  •  The 45-day required timeline from referral to the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP)  meeting has been retained with the addition of some provisions permitting documentation of extraordinary circumstances for a delay
  •  Natural environment provisions have been revised to reflect the 2004 statutory change.
  •  Changes in the content of the IFSP have been made, including in the “early intervention services” and “other services” components.
  •  Several changes have been made to procedural safeguards, including provisions related to written prior notice, confidentiality, surrogate parents, and dispute resolution.
  •  Changes have been made in provisions related to financial responsibility, systems of payment and ability to pay as well as to the use of public benefits, insurance, and private insurance.
  •  Provisions related to monitoring, enforcement, reporting, and allocation have been included in a new subpart of the Part C regulations.

For a complete list of Part C federal regulations click here.

About IDEA Part C in New York State
The New York State Early Intervention Program (EIP) is part of the national Early Intervention Program for infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families. First created by Congress in 1986 under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the EIP is administered by the New York State Department of Health through the Bureau of Early Intervention. In New York State, the Early Intervention Program is established in Article 25 of the Public Health Law and has been in effect since July 1, 1993.

To be eligible for services, children must be under 3 years of age and have a confirmed disability or established developmental delay, as defined by the State, in one or more of the following areas of development: physical, cognitive, communication, social-emotional, and/or adaptive.

 For more information click here.

Myths About Bullying

Knowledge is power, and following up on our very successful Anti Bullying Forum, we wanted to share this important information to dispel some notions you might have regarding abuse or harassment at school.

What is Bullying?
The repeated exposure over time to negative actions or acts of intimidation on the part of one or more students.  The definition includes three important components:
  1.    Aggressive behavior that involves unwanted, negative actions
  2.    A pattern of behavior repeated over time
  3.    An imbalance of power or strength

Some common myths about bullies:
•    Bullies are loners:  Research shows that bullies are not socially isolated; have an easy time making friends; they have a small group of friends who support the bullying behaviors.

•    Bullies have low self esteem:  Bullies have average or above average self-esteem; interventions that focus on building self esteem in bullies are not effective

•    Bullies are looking for attention:  Bullies are looking for control, and the behavior will not stop even if they are ignored.

•    Most bullying happens off school grounds:  Most bullying actually occurs in classrooms, hallways, and playgrounds

•    Bullying affects only a small number of students:  Research shows that 25% of students are victims of bullying and 20% are engaged in bullying; bullying affects everyone involved, even bystanders. 

Source:  Equity Alliance - Addressing Bullying & Harassment Matters 2011

Son-Rise: An Innovative Program for Autism

Fifty Sinergia families attended the Son-Rise Program workshop/lecture on September 20th. Son-Rise was developed by Barry Neil and Samahria Lyte Kaufman, of the Autism Treatment Center Of America in Sheffield- Massachusetts, as a way to work with their son Raun. The Kauffmans created an innovative path which enabled Raun to go from severely autistic to become an intellectually curious, lively and socially engaged young man, bearing no traces of his former condition. The idea behind the program is to help parents meet and engage their child where he or she is, by joining them in their activities until they respond, and then patiently teaching them new ones, for as long as it takes them to come out of the place where they seem to be.

The workshop was a complete success. Susan Humphries, an excellent presenter and great communicator, was able to reach all families present with the help of our simultaneous translator, who we brought in for the high number of Spanish speaking parents that attended. Everyone was left with a sense of wonder and hope, and at least 5 families said they were going to apply for scholarships to Son-Rise's well known retreats in Massachusetts. The Autism Treatment Center will hold a much needed retreat in Spanish during the month of December. For more information on Sinergia's Autism Initiative contact Gina Peña-Campodónico at 212-643-2840 x305 or at gpena at sinergiany.org.

Sinergia hosts Vision Screening Event

Sinergia hosted a special event on Friday September 23rd which offered free eye health screenings to individuals who did not have any medical insurance and who had not seen an eye doctor in over a year.

Over thirty five parents of children with disabilities showed up to have their eyes examined. The Kress Vision Program of New York Downtown Hospital provided a technician and an eye doctor who checked their vision, checked for cataracts or eye disease, and conducted a glaucoma test. 

After the eye exam, participants saw the technician who took measurements for eyeglasses. Parents were able to choose from a large assortment of eyeglasses and will be provided with a pair of glasses, free of charge!

Many of the participants were unemployed and had no medical insurance, so they had not seen an eye doctor in years, and they expressed gratitude to the Kress Vision Program and to Sinergia, who provided the space for this event.

A New Life For Edwin

Some of you may have seen the television segment that Univision aired in March, which was filmed at Sinergia. It featured Edwin, a young man with polio who was desperately looking for a job. He had become quite despondent because although he pursued many employment alternatives none were successful. Much has changed since then, and we are happy to report that this remarkable young man has achieved his goals of becoming a productive citizen.

After the interview aired, Edwin secured a job in a supermarket in Queens through a referral from the reporter at Univision. However, housing was still an issue. He was sleeping on the floor of a friend's apartment, and within a week's time was going to become homeless. Through the persistent efforts of Ana Baquero, a staff member at Sinergia's Family Support Program, an apartment was found close to his work. She raised funds for his rental deposit and is diligently working to secure furnishings and household items. Our appreciation to the East Harlem Neighborhood Based Alliance, Sinergia's Christine Cuadra Special Fund and the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal for providing the needed funds that enabled Edwin to achieve his goals. Edwin has a job, a car, and a home thanks to the combined efforts of the people and organizations that supported him through his time of need.

National Preparadness Month Resources

The storms that have hit New York recently highlight the fact that caregivers need to be prepared to handle emergency situations that arise from natural disasters. President Obama has designated September as National Preparedness Month, and the federal government has compiled many helpful resources for individuals with disabilities during a disaster.


The New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services regularly updates their site on various situations of concern. Additionally, the emergency preparedness section of Disability.gov has many tools and resources, including:

• Information about emergency kits and supplies.
• Preparing for emergencies at work and school.
• Accessible shelters and emergency housing.
• Help recovering from a disaster.
• Tips for people who have pets or service animals.

Other helpful websites include:

• Ready.gov (Listo América)
• FEMA’s Office of Disability Integration and Coordination
• DisabilityPreparedness.gov
• National Preparedness Month Coalition
• DisasterAssistance.gov
• Citizen Corps
• American Red Cross

New Proposed Amendments to IDEA Part B

We received the following notice from the Office of Special Education Programs:

This week the Department of Education released a notice of proposed rulemaking to amend the IDEA Part B regulations.  Changes are being proposed to the regulations regarding when a State or local educational agency seeks to use a child's or parent's public benefits or insurance (e.g., Medicaid) to pay for Part B services.  These proposed amendments to the Part B regulations would ensure the protection of the rights of parents and children and ensure that children with disabilities receive a free appropriate public education (FAPE) while addressing concerns raised by State educational agencies and local educational agencies regarding the burdens imposed by the current regulation. 

Note that the notice of proposed rulemaking has been delivered to the Office of the Federal Register but has not yet been scheduled for publication.  The official version of this document is the document that will be published in the Federal Register in the next couple of weeks. The Part B notice of proposed rulemaking is posted at:

http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/news.html