Student Support Services
Philosophy
Least Restrictive Environment Statement
Flagstaff Unified School District's Board Adopted Position Statement on Educating Students with Disabilities in the Least Restrictive Environment
It is the belief of this school district that students with disabilities should receive educational services in the general education environment in their neighborhood
schools with chronological age peers to the greatest extent appropriate, consistent
with federal and state regulations. Special education is not a "place", but includes an array of services and service delivery options. Students' individual needs, academic
and social, should be carefully considered when making service and service delivery decisions. More restrictive settings should be considered only if the individual needs
of students with disabilities cannot be appropriately met in the general education
setting, as determined by the individual Educational Planning Team.
The district must ensure that a full continuum of service delivery options is available which can meet the needs of all students. This continuum should range from full inclusion in the general education environment with the provision of supplementary
aids and services to out-of-district residential programs. In order to assure that appropriate educational opportunities can be provided for all students within the district, delivery systems and staff development needs should be reviewed on an ongoing basis.
Decisions regarding education in the least restrictive environment for students with disabilities can best occur when parents are full partners in the educational planning process, and when efforts are coordinated with outside agencies who also provide services to students with disabilities and their families.
The task force believes that the provision of service delivery in both general and special education classrooms, with increased collaboration between general and special educators, contributes to maximizing educational opportunities for all students.
