· Bring services to the child rather than bringing the child to the services;
· Reduce bus transportation time;
· Reduce parent transportation time;
· Target monies generated by the December 1 count to the students generating these monies;
· Reduce bureaucracy at all levels;
· The least restrictive environment is advanced with regular classrooms, neighborhood schools, and local school corporations;
· Control and ownership is assigned to the School Board of legal settlement;
· Decision making is decentralized and involves the stakeholders;
· Socially inclusive environments will be the norm;
· Differentiated instruction within the regular classrooms is expected;
· Trusting adult relationships will permeate the culture;
· Indiana Academic Standards are the curricula for all children;
· All children will learn-no exceptions;
· Schools celebrate and welcome diversity;
· Labels will become "a thing of the past";
· A continuum of services is available for each child as defined by needs;
· Exceptional learners shall graduate, attend college, and participate in the work force at rates similar to their peers;
· Laws shall be used to protect the rights of exceptional learners, and shall be followed in spirit;
· Educators will receive intensive training throughout their careers;
· Local schools shall be accountable for achievement results and continuous improvements;
· Special education is a service to deliver, not a place to go;
· Certified and classified employees serve all children;
· Increased parent involvement and satisfaction;
· General intervention teams reduce unnecessary referrals and increase student success in general education;
· And inclusion, rather than exclusion, is the word spoken most frequently and believed as best in our hearts.

INTRODUCTION

CFR Special Services for Exceptional Learners is committed to providing support services to all students and teachers and to providing each student with disabilities a free and appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment. In most cases, it is believed that these services can most effectively be provided by the local school corporation. Such an approach places as much responsibility and accountability with school personnel as possible. It is expected that this approach will provide the following advantages:

· foster feelings of responsibility for meeting the needs of each student among school personnel;
· encourage principals, teachers and other school personnel not only to identify children who may have physical, intellectual, or behavioral problems but to seek alternative strategies for meeting the educational needs of such students;
· encourage the trial of general education alternatives within the school before an evaluation is requested;
· develop a collaborative spirit among school personnel in seeking solutions for students who are encountering difficulties;
· ensure that school personnel will receive information needed to be well informed about students with disabilities, special education programs, related services, district policies and procedures, and other educational alternatives; and
· foster parent participation in planning the student's program.

The role of the CFR administrative staff shall be to:
· provide professional expertise and opinions in matters related to special education services for all students with disabilities from the participating corporations;
· formulate and administer guidelines;
· prepare and manage grants;
· oversee professional development programs; and
· complete and/or assist local administrators with completing required compliance documents.

The role of the school staff shall be to:
· deliver instruction and support services consistent with the policies and procedures established by CFR Special Services for Exceptional Learners;
· monitor the quality of on-going programs within the school;
· seek technical assistance for program improvement;
· provide input to program design and policy development.

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