Preschool Special Education

A preschool program is available for three and four year old children who have been identified with delays in one or more developmental areas. Services are provided within an inclusive preschool program with certified special eduation teachers who team with certified preschool teachers. If needed, students in the preschool program may receive speech, occupational or physical therapy. Speech and language therapy is also available to those three and four year old children who experience speech and/or language delays but are not eligible for the preschool program. Free screenings and evaluations are available for three and four year old children who may have delays but have not been evaluated. The Student Services Specialist is the contact person for preschool referrals. You may contact this office at (910) 451-2461, ext. 241 or 220 to schedule an appointment.

K-12 Special Education Programs

Special education is education designed to meet the unique learning needs of school age students with disabilities. Special education "related services" are services such as occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech/language therapy, specialized transportation, and other services required by a student with a disability to benefit from special education. Services are provided at no cost to Camp Lejeune students who meet the Department of Defense criteria for special education at no cost to the parent/guardian. Special education is provided via an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) developed collaboratively with parents and school staff. Camp Lejeune Dependents Schools primarily uses an "inclusion" service delivery model, meaning that all students with disabilities are educated in classes with their non-disabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate.

Although the Camp Lejeune Schools staff work very hard to provide special education services within the structure of the general education classroom to the maximum extent appropriate, there are a variety of service delivery models and/or combinations of models available to meet a student's unique needs. Some of these models include:

• Instruction within the general education classroom through a variety of models with special education and related service staff members providing different levels of support depending upon students' individual needs.
  • Full time special education support available through a team teaching model. Special education staff member(s) may provide services for the whole day or almost the whole day within the general education classroom.
  • Special education services/support provided in the general education classroom for specific time periods.
  • Special education provided by a dually certified (content or grade level and special education certified teacher) classroom teacher who is responsible for providing the special education support within the context of the classroom/lessons.
  • Instruction and/or curricular modifications and/or accommodations provided within the general education classroom.
• Out-of-classroom instruction in which students leave the regular education classroom for part of the day to receive instruction from a special education staff member, i.e., special education teacher or speech/language therapist.
• Related services, such as occupational or physical therapy, provided within the classroom setting or outside of the general education classroom in a specialized setting.
• Consultation provided by the special education teacher or therapist to the general education teacher.
• Homebound instruction for children who are too medically fragile to attend school.
• Instruction in a special education classroom for the entire school day for students whose special education needs have not been able to be met appropriately within lesser restrictive service delivery models. These services may be contracted out and provided by the local county school system.

If your child has an active Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) from an early intervention program or an active IEP from another school district, please contact the Student Services Offices at (910) 451-2461, ext. 241 or 220 as soon as you know you will be moving to Camp Lejeune. This will help facilitate a smooth transition for your child into the Camp Lejeune Schools. To receive special education services upon enrollment in the Camp Lejeune Dependents Schools, a copy of the active IFSP or IEP must be provided.

If your child is experiencing difficulty learning at school and you suspect that he/she may have a disability, schedule a conference with your child's teacher. If strategies have been implemented with minimal to no change, a referral to the Student Support Team (SST) may be appropriate to assist the teacher with developing effective and practical interventions. The success of the interventions will determine whether a referral for formal evaluation may be necessary.

For teachers of students with special education needs, the DDESS Special Education webpage has a multitude of resources!

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