MPACT Offices are Closed Thursday and Friday, November 24-25th, 2022 | |
National Family Caregivers Month | |
MPACT Trains Foster Adopt Connect Families | |
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FosterAdopt Connect works with children, youth, and families as they navigate the complexities of the child welfare system. With the help of innovative tools, a dedicated professional staff, and over 20 years of experience working in the Kansas and Missouri foster care systems, FAC is equipped to connect children with families that provide love, healing, and stability for a brighter future. MPACT provides training to foster-adopt families across the state. The training we provide meets the requirements for foster care certification. If you are in need of training hours, visit our website to see a list of upcoming training.
Click HERE to visit fosteradopt.org
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Dispute Resolution Resources | |
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The Center for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education's (CADRE) major emphasis is on encouraging the use of mediation, facilitation, and other collaborative processes as strategies for resolving disagreements between parents and schools about children's educational programs and support services. Parent guides for IDEA Part B dispute resolution are available in 13 languages. Companion videos and dispute resolution comparison charts are available in English and Spanish.
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DESE makes mediation available to allow parents or adult students and responsible public agencies to resolve disagreements involving any matter under Part B of IDEA, including matters arising prior to the filing of a child complaint or a due process complaint. Mediation is provided at no cost to either party. DESE-funded mediation is available to resolve disputes regarding the identification, evaluation, educational placement, or related services for students with disabilities. The mediation model form can be found HERE.
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Parents or school district staff may agree to conduct a facilitated IEP team meeting when both parties agree that it would be beneficial to have a neutral person assist the IEP team to efficiently and effectively address team concerns. The neutral IEP facilitator helps to create an environment in which the IEP team members can listen to one another’s points of view. The neutral IEP facilitator’s role is to assist the IEP team to work together to build consensus in developing an IEP that meets the student’s needs and is acceptable to both the parents and the school district. Read more HERE and check out the FIEP Brochure HERE. | |
Parents, eligible students, or a public agency may file a due process complaint with DESE’s Office of Special Education concerning the proposed action of the agency to initiate or refuse to initiate or change the identification, evaluation, or educational placement of the student or the provision of a free appropriate public education to the student. The Due Process complaint must allege a violation that happened not more than two years before the date the parent or the public agency knew or should have known about the alleged action that forms the basis of the due process complaint. The Due Process application can be found HERE. | |
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Tools That Challenge the School to Prison Pipeline | |
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The use of exclusionary disciplinary practices places many children with disabilities at risk for short- and long-term adverse outcomes, including lower achievement, increased likelihood of not graduating, and the risk of early exposure to the juvenile justice system. In 2021, there were 37,690 referrals sent to Missouri’s 46 juvenile courts. 33% of referrals were for delinquency, and 29% were for status offenses. MPACT offers a FREE training called Positive Behavior Intervention: Tools that Challenge the School to Prison Pipeline that takes a deep dive into behavior strategies that are evidence-based and proven to be effective. Schedule this training for your next in-service, parent night, or other social events by clicking HERE and learn how to take a more positive approach to address unwanted behaviors by rethinking discipline.
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November is National Literacy Month | |
The Linkage Between Illiteracy & Incarceration is alarming and sadly not commonly discussed. Education is one strategy proven to help teens stay out of trouble. Functional Family Therapy (FFT) is an evidence-based intervention for at-risk youth and families referred by the school, mental health, juvenile justice, or child welfare systems. To learn more about the FFT program, click HERE. | |
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Request for Stakeholder Engagement | |
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The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) established the State Performance Plan/Annual Performance Report (SPP/APR), which is a series of “indicators” designed to measure results for children and families served in Missouri’s Part C early intervention program known as First Steps. The Office of Childhood is engaging with Missouri stakeholders to review targets or goals for these indicators to analyze data, develop improvement strategies, and evaluate progress. A webinar will be held on December 8 from noon to 1:00 to share information with stakeholders and gather feedback. A link to join the webinar will be provided closer to the event date
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Governors Council on Disability Inclusion Award | |
The deadline for nominations is January 31, 2023. | |
The nomination form and criteria are available HERE. | |
Youths with disabilities can be nominated HERE. | |
Rethink Disabilities in the Workplace | |
Watch this TEDx talk by Chantel Buck as she asks us to “Re-Think Disabilities in the Workplace.” | |
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“Your misconceptions (about disability) shouldn’t affect my ability to get a job or be treated like a human…”
- Chantel Buck
She suggests we all take three simple steps to make workplaces more inclusive and responsive:
- Seek to understand what it means to have a disability.
- Instead of stopping at what people cannot do, think about what they have to offer in the workplace.
- Ask the question:‘how can my workplace be more inclusive to people with disabilities?’
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The 2022-23 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) launched at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. New and returning students who plan to attend college between July 1, 2022, and June 30, 2023, should complete the FAFSA as soon as possible. To assist students and parents in the process, the Department’s Federal Student Aid (FSA) office has been sharing tips @FAFSA, including “7 Things You Need Before Filling Out the FAFSA Form”.
FSA continues to take steps to make it easier to complete and submit the FAFSA form. For example:
- students’ prior drug convictions, as well as registration status with Selective Service, no longer affect their federal student aid eligibility;
- gov is even easier to navigate to get help and information, with an entirely new look and feel; and
- in most states, applicants only see the questions on the FAFSA form that pertain to them.
Students and parents may complete the FAFSA form online at FAFSA.gov and through the myStudentAid mobile application.
In related news, the Department released the latest federal student loan cohort default rate, which decreased (from 9.7% to 7.3%) for students who entered repayment between fiscal years 2017 and 2018 and subsequently defaulted before September 30, 2020. This new cohort default rate represents the lowest national rate since the three-year rate was first released in 2012. Schools with high default rates may lose their eligibility to participate in federal student aid programs.
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Upcoming MPACT Webinars
Click on the links below to register
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View all upcoming MPACT trainings HERE. | |
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All MPACT trainings are free of charge! If you would like to schedule any MPACT training in your area or for your organization
please click on the link HERE.
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Join Our Team - Apply Now | |
Make A Difference, Join MPACT Today! | |
Shop with MPACT on Amazon Smile :) | |
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Your holiday shopping can help make a difference, at no additional cost to you!
When you shop at smile.amazon.com, or in the Amazon app with AmazonSmile turned on within Settings, you'll find the same products and same low prices as the Amazon you already know - plus, they donate a portion of your purchases to your chosen charity.
You can select us as your AmazonSmile charity by visiting: smile.amazon.com/ch/43-1460328
#amazonsmilecharity #amazonsmiledonates
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MPACT is funded in part or whole by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs Grant No. H328M090020-10. The contents of the website, however, and any documents cited herein do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the U.S Department of Education.
Copyright © 2022 MPACT. All rights reserved
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