Mission Statement

The Mission of the Special Education Services Department of the Plano Independent School District is to provide an excellent education for students with identified needs.

Beliefs
We believe that:

• The purpose of special education is for students to achieve learning that leads to life success such as:  academic achievement, meeting basic needs, self-determination, career attainment, and social and emotional well-being.
• A quality education occurs in an environment where communication and collaboration are the shared responsibility among students, families, staff and the community.
• Respect and dignity for students and families and a demonstrated understanding of their diversity is essential to a quality education.
• Learning is a life-long process for all, driven by individual student needs.
• Individually designed educational programs based on identified students needs lead to meaningful participation and maximum growth.

 Values Statement

• We know that the world is an inclusive community. It’s very important for children to have the opportunity to learn and grow within communities that represent the kind of world they’ll live in when they finish high school.~ Mara Sapon-Shevin

 Implementation Strategies

• Every student who has a disability has an IEP that was developed through family and staff collaboration with student input whenever possible.
• Every IEP is implemented in the Least Restrictive Envirnoment appropriate so that the general education curriculum, teachers, and environment are considered first. Additionally, natural supports are cultivated on each campus.
• Each campus offers a balance between inclusive educational practices and specialized instruction so that students have the opportunity to benefit academically, socially, and in life skills, and ultimately reach their post-secondary goals. The intensity of special education support is continually adjusted, resulting in an increasingly higher level of independence for the student and less need for special education services.
• Each campus seeks to create a community that embraces learning differences which results in continuous staff development and best practices in the classroom.
• An interdependent philosophy and practice to share in the development of each child is cultivated through vertical teaming between general education and special education teachers.

For more information about Special Education services offered by Plano ISD, please
click below to reach the PISD Special Education Services page.

Link - http://k-12.pisd.edu/currinst/sped/default.html