Volume 6 | March 2021
RI Special Education Advisory Committee Seeking New Members for 2021-22
RISEAC has started its 2021-2022 membership recruitment and is seeking parents, school personnel, agency representatives and individuals interested in the education of children with disabilities to serve on the Committee. The Committee is seeking members who will bring a spirit of collaboration, sense of commitment and new ideas addressing the unmet needs of students with disabilities in Rhode Island. RISEAC welcomes interested individuals to attend as a member of the public during the 2020-2021 year. Please click here to access the 2020-2021 RISEAC meeting schedule.  

Applications can be accessed here and may be returned to Kerri Sorensen (kerri.sorensen@ride.ri.gov) at the RIDE Office of Student, Community and Academic Supports.  

Upcoming Events
Coming soon (date/time TBD)-- another free webinar:

"Labels in Special Education: Pros, Cons and Perspectives"

An examination of the various labels that pervade the IDEA and are often applied to students with disabilities, not just the disabilities themselves. Labels can be helpful and hurtful, pragmatic and pejorative... please join us for a conversation on the origins and the future of labels in special education.
Service Spotlight:
Tides Family Services, Inc. is a not-for-profit social services agency focusing on addressing the needs of children at risk.

Since its incorporation in 1983, Tides has promoted family preservation and maintenance of youth within their communities through individual, family and group counseling; home visitations; educational and court advocacy as well as the networking of social services.

Tides aims to provide the children, youth and their families with the services they need.
RI General Assembly: Bills of Interest
A brief overview of some of the new legislation pertaining to special education that is percolating in the General Assembly this year...
There have been a number of new bills introduced in the Rhode Island General Assembly this session that touch on topics of interest to students with disabilities and the families and teachers who support them. We offer the following snippets on some that caught our eye, with links to the full text if you are interested in learning more...