Teaming Up: Using the IDEA and Medicaid to Secure Comprehensive Mental Health Services for Children and Youth This recent report from the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law is designed to inform practitioners – attorneys and advocates who are not familiar with using either IDEA or Medicaid – how to obtain the services and supports needed by children with emotional and behavioral disorders. Downloadable. 30 pages. ++++++++++ Smoking During Pregnancy Increases ADHD Risk
A study at the University of Wales College of Medicine surveyed pregnant women to determine if they smoked and analyzed conduct-disorder symptoms in 1,452 pairs of twins. While genetic factors were linked to most cases of ADHD in the twins, the study also found that smoking during pregnancy significantly influenced the development of ADHD symptoms in the Children. ++++++++++ Identifying and Treating Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Resource for School and Home resource guide for families and educators provides information on ADD identification and treatment with sections on legal requirements, treatment option and helpful hints on how to improve the quality of life at home and at school for a child identified with ADHD. This is the first of three such reports to be published by the Office of Special Education Programs. About 20 pages in length in small type. Looks like a useful document to have on the shelf. Thanks to Lili Garfinkel for sending me this report. ++++++++++ ADD/ADHD Symptoms Fact Sheet – straightforward information about the symptoms of ADHD. Includes description of symptoms for each age group, from preschool-aged children through adults. ++++++++++ National Resource Center on ADHD
The center is a program of CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder) and has been established as a clearinghouse of information and resources concerning ADHD. You might want to take a look at these sections of the site:
Diagnosis and Treatment
Dealing with Systems – The Legal System
++++++++++ FAS/FAE Legal Issues Resource Center
The University of Washington’s School of Law and its Fetal Alcohol and Drug Unit are collaborating to construct the FAS/FAE Legal Issues Resource Center. Research on a variety of subjects is now being loaded on the Resource Center web page. FAS/E and the Criminal Justice System is now up and accessible. Juvenile Justice Issues, Education Plan Entitlement, Adoption Issues, and others will follow soon. Click on FAS/E and the Criminal Justice System and again on Dealing With Police to look at the “Medical Information Card” an individual with FAS/FAE can present to the police explaining his or her disability. This section also presents a general guide for dealing with the police. ++++++++++ Addressing the Needs of Youth with Disabilities in the Juvenile Justice System: The Current Status of Evidence-based Research
This new report from the National Council on Disability “summarizes and assesses the state of knowledge about children and youth with disabilities with a history of delinquency and involvement in, or who have already entered, the juvenile justice system.”
This report is a walloping 200+ pages long including appendices. I downloaded the introductory letter to the President, the executive summary, introduction and background, pages 1 through 10 of the report, and then clicked on page three for Chapter 5: Disability, Delinquency and Juvenile Justice. ++++++++++ Learning Disabilities Online
Resources, information, news about learning disabilities for parents, teachers, kids. These pages from the site: Finding Help – links to dozens of organizations, agencies, resources Tales from the Road – monthly column. This one describes the Maine Laptop Program, an educational technology program that puts a laptop into the hands of every seventh grader in the state and all their teachers. The computer goes with the child through high school graduation. Describes the obstacles that had to be overcome to make the program work – making the teachers computer literate and laptop maintenance and repair, to name two.
++++++++++ Maltreatment of Children with Disabilities Training and Prevention Program Resources- resources, programs, materials, to address the risk and prevention of maltreatment of children with disabilities. ++++++++++ Oso de Oro Lake Park – Fresno , California – The creation of a park designed for accessibility and usability by children with physical challenges. It incorporates a live stream, lake with observation docks, picnic facilities, big and little kids play equipment, wheelchair basketball, special restroom accommodations, and more. ++++++++++ EDJJ Notes
The National Center on Education, Disability and Juvenile Justice publishes a dandy little internet newsletter with reports on programs, research, information for parents, and other timely subjects within its scope. It appears to be published every couple-three months, but not on any particular schedule I can detect. No fee. Sign up via email to receive it. The latest issue, March 2003, contains articles on immaturity and juvenile offenders, school reform, a book review, and support for parents of youth with mental health problems. ++++++++++ In the Best Interests of All – A Position Paper of the Children’s Behavioral Alliance
This paper is the product of 17 advocacy organizations regarding the positive behavioral support needs of students with significant social, emotional, and/or behavioral differences. After reviewing the available scientific evidence and professional literature, the group concluded that many of the provisions of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments of 1997 (IDEA ’97) have yet to be fully implemented for children and youth with disabilities, and failing to do so continues to stand in the way of every child receiving a first-class education in America. The position paper includes sections on best practices, including screening, assessment, and diagnosis, school-based interventions and future prospects.
20 page pdf file. Go to the CHADD web site and look to the left side of the screen for the link to the paper. ++++++++++ National Association for the Education of African American Children with Learning Disabilities
Founded with the purpose of increasing awareness and promoting an understanding of the specific issues facing African American children, this organization and its web site will provide the reader information news, research, resources, and access to a parent network. Includes information on individuals and organizations experienced in minority research and special education. ++++++++++ The Special Needs of Youth in the Juvenile Justice System: Implications for Effective Practice
The Children’s Law Center in Covington, Kentucky offers this publication. Special Needs of Youth was written by and is for the legal profession. It looks to be a valuable resource for attorneys who work in this area. Chapters cover everything from how to recognize youth with special needs through educational rights of youth with disabilities, competency and waiver, evaluation, and special education services in short and long-term juvenile correctional facilities.
Available through the Children’s Law Center web site. Can be downloaded as a zip file. I don’t have a cost for the hard copy version, which is about 250 pages. There is an email address at the site to contact for ordering information.
+++++++++++ Center for Effective Collaboration and Practice
This web site is devoted to “improving services for children and youth with emotional and behavioral problems; helping communities create schools that promote emotional well-being, effective instruction, and safe learning, and supporting effective collaboration at a local, state, and national level.” As you can no doubt surmise, it’s a big web site and it has a lot of information. It would be well worth your time to spend some of it roaming through the resources and information here. Here are some of the things I found: Seven Monographs on Juvenile Justice – I mentioned in Brevity two weeks ago that these were available through the National Center on Education, Disability, and Juvenile Justice. The monographs are a collaboration between the two organizations. The difference is that you can download all seven monographs at this site, eliminating the charge for hard copies. At the Promising Practices Mini-web look at a series of monographs on promising practices in comprehensive community mental health services for children and their families, which are all downloadable. T he reports I looked at are eminently useable. Wraparound: Stories from the Field, for instance, provides descriptions of wraparound services in Rhode Island , on an Indian Reservation, in King County , Wash. , in Stark County , Ohio , all of them different and innovative.
Single page briefs provide the reader with short, on-point information on a variety of related subjects. Here are three I read and liked:
Why Are We Surprised? – Documents the lack of support special ed students and their teachers receive and their consequent poor school results in regular education courses.
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++++++++++ EDJJ Monograph Series on Educational Disability and Juvenile Justice
The National Center on Education, Disability and Juvenile Justice has published a series of monographs intended as a resource to increase awareness and understanding of the key issues related to youth with disabilities in the juvenile justice system and youth at risk of court involvement. One of the co-authors of the first of seven monographs, Addressing Invisible Barriers, Improving Outcomes for Youth with Disabilities in the Juvenile Justice System, is NCJFCJ past-president Judge Gerald Rouse. This monograph addresses the need for disability-specific approaches to making adjudication and placement decisions for children and youth. Each monograph if $3.50 and all seven are available for $24. Order form at the EDJJ web site.
While you’re at the site look over the variety of resources available there and sign up to receive the free bi-monthly online newsletter, EDJJ Notes, about educating youth with disabilities in juvenile corrections. ++++++++++ International Consensus Statement on ADHD
Dr. Russell Barkley, probably the country’s leading authority on ADHD, is the author of an International Consensus Statement on ADHD. The statement reiterates the absolute existence of ADHD and the media’s responsibility in reporting on ADHD. In Barkley’s words, "The media have a responsibility to accurately report on AD/HD – not treat it as if it were some kind of entertaining sporting event, pitting one side against the other." The International Consensus Statement includes the endorsement of more than 90 of the world’s leading scientists, researchers and clinicians treating AD/HD and other mental disorders.
Read the CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) press release on the Statement. Click on the statement in the What's New Box.
Read the complete text of the statement in ADDitude Magazine. ADHD Myths, Ritalin Fears, and Media Responsibility
Approaching the same subject from a less academic point of view, here is an editorial about ADHD and the press by Peter Jaksa, Ph.D, President of National ADDA (Attention Deficit Disorder Association). A sample from the editorial:
"The erstwhile "experts" who write highly sensationalistic books about the "myth" of ADHD and exaggerate the dangers of medication enjoy little respect within their professional communities." ..... "Amazingly, some members of the media seem drawn to these books and authors like moths to the flames. The media, as Dr. Thomas Phelan and others have pointed out, loves controversy or whatever passes for controversy. The "myth" of ADHD has itself become a topic du jour."
++++++++++ ADHD & Driving: A Guide for parents of Teens with AD/HD - This book by J. Marlene Snyder, Ph. D, makes parents aware of the many decisions that must be made before putting their child with ADHD in the driver’s seat. It includes information about what we know about teen drivers, how ADHD and coexisting behaviors impact driving behavior, 20 steps for parents that promote safe driving behaviors, and how to deal with poor driving behaviors. Includes checklists, worksheets, and sample contracts intended to assist parents in encouraging safe driving behaviors by their teens. Having looked this book over myself I’m inclined to think it would be a handy and useful tool for any parent whose teens are (shudder) nearing driving age. Available for $17 each plus sh & h. Here is an article on ADHD written for foster and adoptive parents by the same author: An Overview of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ++++++++++ The National Center on Education, Disability and Juvenile Justice
I revisited this site this week and discovered some new resources you may find helpful. Here are some of the things I found interesting at this site: Juvenile Correctional Education Programs: The Case for Quality Education in Juvenile Correctional Facilities - Approximately 10 percent of youth are identified as disabled and in need of special education by public school systems national. In contrast, 30 to 50 percent of incarcerated youth have disabilities. Special Education in Correctional Facilities - Number and characteristics of youth with disabilities in correctional facilities, the provision of free appropriate public education (FAPE) to youth in facilities, identifying and assessing children with disabilities, providing special education and related services, and more. Downloadable. Juvenile Justice Education: Who is Educating the Youth? - by Bruce Wolford, Ph.D, national survey in which the respondents reported that in more than half the states no state department of education funds were directed to educate youth in juvenile justice settings. Reports on federal court interventions in place in 20 percent of surveyed states. The most extensive education delivery system for at-risk and delinquent youth was found in Kentucky. Interesting data, with detailed profiles of promising practices in four states. Concludes with a set of recommendations. Downloadable. Transition Aftercare - How to develop transition educational plans for youth with disabilities in the juvenile justice system transitioning from a correctional facility to the community. The need for community support as well as all the IDEA requirements. Downloadable. Summary of Class Action Litigation Involving Special Education claims in Juvenile and Adult Correctional Facilities – Information for advocates, policy makers and educators. Includes a useful glossary of terms. Downloadable.
National Center on Education, Disability and Juvenile Justice - EDJJ offers a gold mine of information, training programs, publications, and resources for juvenile justice professionals, educators and parents of children with disabilities in the juvenile justice system. This site is a collaborative among the University of Maryland, Arizona State University, the University of Kentucky, the American Institutes for Research, and the PACER Center. It offers training, technical assistance, publications, resources, and information.
The site currently features Resources on Transition of Incarcerated Youth which includes a training module for persons working with youth with disabilities in the juvenile justice system.
Documents in the publications section are apparently all downloadable. (I didn’t check them all.) Almost all of them deal with special education in the juvenile justice system.
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