Special education is governed by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and is defined as “specially designed instruction, at no cost to parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability.”

In Maine, the rule chapter that is specific to the education of children with disabilities is Maine Department of Education Regulations, Chapter 101, Maine Unified Special Education Regulation Birth to Age Twenty (MUSER).

Section 504 is a part of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 that prohibits discrimination based upon disability. Section 504 is an anti-discrimination, civil rights statute that requires the needs of students with disabilities to be met as adequately as the needs of the non-disabled are met.

Section 504 states that: “No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States, as defined in section 706(8) of this title, shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance…” [29 U.S.C. §794(a), 34 C.F.R. §104.4(a)].

Multi-tiered systems of support take a proactive approach to identifying students with academic or social-emotional needs. Early assessment and intervention for these students can help them catch up with their peers sooner. The key components of MTSS include:

• Universal screening of all students early in the school year

• Tiers of interventions that can be amplified in response to levels of need

• Ongoing data collection and continual assessment

• Schoolwide approach to expectations and supports

• Parent involvement

Adapted from: “What Is MTSS?: A Multi-Tiered System of Supports.” PBIS Rewards, 5 Mar. 2019, www.pbisrewards.com/blog/what-is-mtss/

Bonny Eagle's English Language Learner program is specifically designed to facilitate language learning and development to multilingual learners (MLs).  Multilingual learners are students with a primary or home language other than English who are in the process of acquiring English. Multilingual learners bring many valuable assets with them to our schools. 

The focus of English language instruction, conducted by a certified teacher, is to assist students in achieving academic and social language proficiency through individualized supports and equitable academic opportunities. Explicit language instruction in listening, speaking, reading, and writing will allow ML students to be successful and fully participate in all aspects of school life.

 Our goal is not only to help MLs become English proficient, but to also make the content of the classroom more accessible,  and to help support a welcoming environment to students and families.

Ana A. Abbott, MS in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages
aabbott@bonnyeagle.org

(207-710-6985) 

If you need to reach me, please send an email, text, or leave a message. 

M.S.A.D. #6 is required to locate, evaluate and identify any child residing in the district who qualifies for Special Education services. Children eligible for special education include those children with disabilities who have autism, deaf-blindness, emotional disturbance, hearing impairment, intellectual disability, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairment, other health impairment, specific learning disability, speech or language impairment, traumatic brain injury, visual impairment, or developmental delay and who, because of such impairment, need special education services.

If you suspect your child has a disability and may need special education services, or if you would like additional information, please contact the Office of Special Services at (207) 929-2317.

Maine Special Education Rule XIV.14 (2015) requires written parental consent for any school unit to send by electronic mail (e-mail) certain special education records to the parent of a child with a disability. Those special education records are the following: Written Notice Procedural Safeguards, Advanced Written Notice, Annual Parental Consent Notification, the IEP, Progress reports on IEP goals, Notices related to due process hearings.  To give consent to send these records electronically, please complete the Parent Consent for Electronic Delivery of Certain Special Education Records form (https://secure.blueink.com/portal/72PucJMEddWsGB8yCFj9Dje6).