IDEA permits states to have a definition of DEVELOPMENTAL DELAY up to age 9 yrs old. We have this option in VA up to 8 years old at this time. But the Bd of Ed cut this back to age 6 on 9/25/2008 in the proposed sped regs (they have not yet passed). It will go into effect if these regs are passed after this 30 day comment period ends.

But you all need to write to Gov Kaine on his website and tell him that this will have a 'substantial impact' on our 6-9s with DD. Remind him that he wants to be known for promoting early childhood. not hindering it for our young children with developmental delays between the ages of 5-9. Remind him that he says "Virginia is Leading the Way!' Write how important it is to make the age range up to 9 yrs old. Refer him to Wisconsin's Dept of Public Instruction-such a progressive state. WDPI realized the importance of early intervention as well as the stigma of such harsh labels as 'mentally retarded' and 'emotionally disturbed' on a child's school records in these vulnerable years. They saw no fiscal impact by retaining the  DEVELOPMENTAL DELAY name option for their 5-9s. They used the research that shows that labels harm children. You can refer the Gov to the position statements of the National Assn for the Ed of Young Children and the Division for Early Childhood of the Council for Exceptional Children which cites the 5-9 year old period as one of significant developmental change. As a fragile developmental period in which it is difficult to determine the difference between a significant learning disability and mild intellectual disability (formerly known as mental retardation).

You can also write that there are harsh labels that  carry stigma and that parents are not given informed consent for  'mentally retarded' or "emotionally disturbed" or that many VA school systems continue to hide a child's label or placement under assorted acronyms by not writing them out so families don't catch on what  EMH, EMR, TMH, MIID really stands for. You can tell the Governor how even if the VA Dept of Ed or a Director of Sped in a school system can swear that 'label does not drive placement', that attitude and message still hasn't filtered down in the each school's culture and staff and that even in 2009, children continue to be placed in segregated rooms (with the standard, tired access to gen ed only being field trips,cafeteria, art/music/library and assemblies) based on their label of MR or ED.  

Tell the Gov that disproportionate rep (too many African American children in sped) is not due to that DEVELOPMENTAL DELAY NAME OPTION for the 5-9s but a failure of a school to implement research-based Response to Intervention within the general ed classroom so that a referral to special ed is unnecessary. (I was at a Child Study a few weeks ago and when the teachers were asked 'tell us what RTIs you are doing, responded, 'well we moved him to the front of the room, we reduced his spelling list, we give him frequent breaks'--ARGHHHHHHH! this is not RtI!!!!-but in most VA schools this is the perception of RTI at this time!).

Be sure to advocate for the DD NAME OPTION to the Gov even if your child is no longer in this age range. DD received the second highest number of comments in the first public comment period. This shows that it was an important concern. BOE moving the age to 6 (on 9/25/2008) just doesn't cut it for our kids who will have years of being in segregated rooms and becoming what they are named because they were mislabeled at age 6 before they even had good exposure to the reading, writing, 'rithmetic curriculum. Think about labels that may work for children. like AUTISM which is an almost certain guarantee, because of the strong advocacy skills of parents, that those children (as compared to those labeled ID or ED)  will get data-based teaching strategies/decisions to increase their skills. HI-Hearing Impairment-again a specific method of teaching occurs with this label. And if that Eligibiity team wants to pin a label of ID-Intellectual Dis or 'emotionally disturbed' on your 6-9 yr old because the IQ is low, or the other scores are 'flat', behavior/attention/communication/social skills are off, yell 'NO-it's a stigma label!' and then say "I will take SLI-Speech Language Impairment bc communication is a major deficit. or yell 'NO-it's a stigma label' and then say "I will take OHI-Other Health Impairment' because of those attention-behavior issues. or to flat out tell that ELig/IEP team, 'I don't care if you need some label or not for your reporting purposes or your Dec 1 Child Count. Put my child down under SWD-Student with a Disability, no ther label, and just work with me on an appropriate IEP!"

Try to get the Gov to realize that in VA at this time that 'label drives placement' instead of the IEP's present level and the goals. that because of the special ed teacher shortage here, we now have well-meaning people/staff on Elig/IEP teams who have no concept of the devastating effects of homogeneous groupings of children in segregated rooms (rather than the vibrant and challenging heterogeneous groupings of the gen ed classrooms), speds who don't know how to teach content reading/math, who don't know how or have the courage to push an admin to get more supports to their students (bc they're going to quit in June anyway bc the sped paperwork is too much for them to handle), who don't realize that there is no access to the school's Reading Resource  or Math Specialist bc that would be be 'double-dipping' into two fed programs-IDEA and TItle 1 so that  this 'warm body in training' is expected to teach content Reading and Math and fails at it bc she's still 'in-training'.

So who gets to 'teach' that DD child placed in the ID or ED segregated room?-peers who struggle with the same issues as your child. year after year. until your child becomes ID or ED. That DD child who needs access to the typical peer models in the gen ed rooms by having the support of a licensed, well-trained DD sped para. or teacher and specialists collaboratively working with those equally wonderful gen ed teachers and parents.