115.76(4)
(4) "Division" means the division for learning support, equity and advocacy.
115.76(5m)
(5m) "Hearing officer" means an independent examiner chosen to conduct hearings under
s. 115.81.
115.76(5r)
(5r) "Institutional resident" means a child with exceptional educational needs who has been admitted to and is domiciled or cared for in or by a special purpose residential care center which specializes in the care and treatment of children described under
sub. (3).
115.76(7)
(7) "Part of a program" means that portion of a program in which a child with a particular type of exceptional educational need participates.
115.76(8)
(8) "Reduced program" means any program which has decreased its educational services, facilities or staff in the manner and degree specified in written standards issued by the department.
Effective date note
NOTE: Sub. (8) is shown as amended eff. 1-1-96 by
1995 Wis. Act 27. The treatment by Act 27 was held unconstitutional and declared void by the Supreme Court in Thompson v. Craney, case no.
95-2168-OA. Prior to Act 27 it read:
Effective date text
(8) "Reduced program" means any program which has decreased its educational services, facilities or staff in the manner and degree specified in written standards issued by the state superintendent.
115.76(9)
(9) "Regular education" means the educational program provided by a public or private school for children who do not have exceptional educational needs.
115.76(10)
(10) "Special education" means specially designed instruction, at no cost to a child or the child's parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with exceptional educational needs, including all of the following:
115.76(10)(b)
(b) Instruction conducted in a classroom, at home, in hospitals and institutions or in any other setting.
115.76(12)
(12) "State or county residential facility" means a state residential facility operated by the department of health and family services, or a county residential facility operated by a county board.
115.76 Note
NOTE: 1991 Wis. Act 15 substitutes "cognitive disability" for "mental retardation" in sub. (3) (b). The legislature intends the substitution solely to reflect its determination that the former term is a less pejorative means of referring to the same condition.
115.77
115.77
Division for learning support, equity and advocacy. 115.77(1)(1)
Appointment of administrator. The secretary shall appoint the administrator.
Effective date note
NOTE: Sub. (1) is shown as amended eff. 1-1-96 by
1995 Wis. Act 27. The treatment by Act 27 was held unconstitutional and declared void by the Supreme Court in Thompson v. Craney, case no.
95-2168-OA. Prior to Act 27 it read:
Effective date text
(1) Appointment of administrator. The state superintendent shall appoint the administrator.
115.77(2)
(2) Duties of administrator. Subject to the direction of the secretary, the administrator:
Effective date note
NOTE: Sub. (2) (intro.) is shown as amended eff. 1-1-96 by
1995 Wis. Act 27. The treatment by Act 27 was held unconstitutional and declared void by the Supreme Court in Thompson v. Craney, case no.
95-2168-OA. Prior to Act 27 it read:
Effective date text
(2) Duties of administrator. Subject to the direction of the state superintendent, the administrator:
115.77(2)(a)
(a) Shall appoint qualified personnel necessary to perform the duties required of the division.
115.77(2)(b)
(b) Shall audit expenditures incurred for children with exceptional educational needs.
115.77(3)
(3) Special education responsibilities. The division shall be responsible for:
115.77(3)(a)
(a) Services for children with exceptional educational needs who are under the jurisdiction of the department and for the Wisconsin school for the deaf and the Wisconsin school for the visually handicapped.
Effective date note
NOTE: Par. (a) is shown as amended eff. 1-1-96 by
1995 Wis. Act 27. The treatment by Act 27 was held unconstitutional and declared void by the Supreme Court in Thompson v. Craney, case no.
95-2168-OA. Prior to Act 27 it read:
Effective date text
(a) Services for children with exceptional educational needs who are under the jurisdiction of the state superintendent and for the Wisconsin school for the deaf and the Wisconsin school for the visually handicapped.
115.77(3)(am)
(am) Monitoring special education in this state and enforcing this subchapter.
115.77(3)(c)
(c) Services provided to children with exceptional educational needs by special education programs under
s. 115.85 (2).
115.77(3)(d)
(d) Supervision of the education of all children who have exceptional educational needs and who reside in a child caring institution pursuant to a placement under
s. 115.815 (4), who reside in any facility operated by the state or a county or who attend county residential facilities or day care centers of a county department under
s. 51.42. Such supervision shall include:
115.77(3)(d)1.
1. The power to require the submission of reports relating to educational services provided or planned.
115.77(3)(d)2.
2. Advising the superintendent of each state or county facility.
115.77(3)(d)3.
3. Recommending to the department standards for certification of personnel whom the department determines to be involved in the education of children described in this paragraph.
Effective date note
NOTE: Subd. 3. is shown as amended eff. 1-1-96 by
1995 Wis. Act 27. The treatment by Act 27 was held unconstitutional and declared void by the Supreme Court in Thompson v. Craney, case no.
95-2168-OA. Prior to Act 27 it read:
Effective date text
3. Recommending to the state superintendent standards for certification of personnel whom the state superintendent determines to be involved in the education of children described in this paragraph.
115.77(3)(e)
(e) Making or approving arrangements for transportation to and from the child's home to the special education program, or, on school days for board, lodging and transportation to and from the child's boarding home to the special education program, if the child's parents reside outside the school district, cooperative educational service agency or county in which the child receives special education.
115.77(4)
(4) Division duties. The division shall:
115.77(4)(a)
(a) Coordinate the development of all special education programs operated by a school district, county handicapped children's education board, board of control of a cooperative educational service agency, state or county residential facility or day care center of a county department under
s. 51.42 for children who have exceptional educational needs, and coordinate the development of all special education programs operated by a child caring institution under
s. 115.815 (4).
115.77(4)(b)
(b) Before the program receives any state funds, approve all special education programs operated by a school board, county handicapped children's education board, board of control of a cooperative educational service agency, state or county residential facility or day care center of a county department under
s. 51.42 for children with exceptional educational needs, and approve all special education programs operated by a child caring institution under
s. 115.815 (4).
115.77(4)(c)
(c) Before a discontinuance or reduction of program becomes effective, approve all plans to discontinue or reduce programs operated by a school district, county handicapped children's education board, board of control of a cooperative educational service agency, state or county residential facility or day care center of a county department under
s. 51.42 for children who have exceptional educational needs.
115.77(4)(d)
(d) Maintain current information on all public and private special education programs within the state and make this information public.
115.77(4)(e)
(e) Whenever an individual's report is made under
s. 115.80 (1) (a), inform the person who made the report and the child's parent of the procedure for obtaining an evaluation of the child by a multidisciplinary team under
s. 115.80 (3).
115.77(4)(f)
(f) Develop a program for the preparation, recruitment and in-service training of personnel in special education and related fields, including participation, as appropriate, by institutions of higher education, state and local agencies and other public and private organizations. A plan for the development of this program, including statements of duties and responsibilities of personnel to be trained, shall be made and implemented.
115.77(5)
(5) Receipt of federal aid. Any federal aid which is made available for special education programs shall be granted the division for carrying out plans approved by the federal agency having supervision of the aid program.
115.78
115.78
State exceptional educational needs plan. The department shall annually issue and make public a state plan for the education of children with exceptional educational needs. The state plan shall include:
Effective date note
NOTE: Sec. 115.78 (intro.) is shown as amended eff. 1-1-96 by
1995 Wis. Act 27. The treatment by Act 27 was held unconstitutional and declared void by the Supreme Court in Thompson v. Craney, case no.
95-2168-OA. Prior to Act 27 it read:
Effective date text
115.78 State exceptional educational needs plan. The state superintendent shall annually issue and make public a state plan for the education of children with exceptional educational needs. The state plan shall include:
115.78(1)
(1) The number and geographic distribution of all children who reside in this state and who have exceptional educational needs.
115.78(2)
(2) A listing of all public and private special education programs available in this state, the number of children attending each special education program pursuant to
s. 115.85 (2) or supervised under
s. 115.77 (3) (d) and the state aid given to each program so attended or supervised.
115.78(3)
(3) A statement of the personnel and facilities available through public and private special education programs to provide instruction and other services for children with exceptional educational needs.
115.78(4)
(4) An analysis of the present distribution of responsibility for special education between the state, school districts and other governmental units.
115.78(5)
(5) Identification of the specific goals of each type of special education program in which children are enrolled pursuant to
s. 115.85 (2) or provided by a state or county facility supervised under
s. 115.77 (3) (d).
115.78(6)
(6) Standards for the screening, identification and educational program for children with exceptional educational needs.
115.78(7)
(7) A 5-year projection of the special education needs of children who reside in this state.
115.78(8)
(8) Recommendations for changes in the law and administrative procedures to meet the special education needs stated in the plan.
115.78 History
History: 1973 c. 89;
1995 a. 27 s.
9145 (1).
115.781
115.781
Reports of service to handicapped children. The department shall report to the governor, the joint committee on finance and the chief clerk of each house of the legislature, for distribution to the appropriate standing committees under
s. 13.172 (3), the state's progress toward achieving full service to handicapped children under the education for all handicapped children act of 1975 (
P.L. 94-142). The department shall submit reports under this section within 45 days of the collection of data for the submission of the report of handicapped children receiving special education and related services, or its successor forms, as required under
P.L. 94-142.
Effective date note
NOTE: This section is shown as amended eff. 1-1-96 by
1995 Wis. Act 27. The treatment by Act 27 was held unconstitutional and declared void by the Supreme Court in Thompson v. Craney, case no.
95-2168-OA. Prior to Act 27 it read:
Effective date text
115.781 Reports of service to handicapped children. The state superintendent shall report to the governor, the joint committee on finance and the chief clerk of each house of the legislature, for distribution to the appropriate standing committees under s. 13.172 (3), the state's progress toward achieving full service to handicapped children under the education for all handicapped children act of 1975 (P.L. 94-142). The state superintendent shall submit reports under this section within 45 days of the collection of data for the submission of the report of handicapped children receiving special education and related services, or its successor forms, as required under P.L. 94-142
115.79
115.79
Council on exceptional education. 115.79(1)
(1) The secretary shall consult with the council on exceptional education concerning:
Effective date note
NOTE: Sub. (1) (intro.) is shown as amended eff. 1-1-96 by
1995 Wis. Act 27. The treatment by Act 27 was held unconstitutional and declared void by the Supreme Court in Thompson v. Craney, case no.
95-2168-OA. Prior to Act 27 it read:
Effective date text
(1) The state superintendent shall consult with the council on exceptional education concerning:
115.79(1)(a)
(a) All proposed department or division policies and rules relating to the education of children with exceptional educational needs.
115.79(1)(b)
(b) New special education programs, expansions, reductions or terminations of existing special education programs under
s. 115.77 (4) (b) and
(c).
115.79(1)(d)
(d) Any other matters upon which the secretary wishes the council's opinion.
Effective date note
NOTE: Par. (d) is shown as amended eff. 1-1-96 by
1995 Wis. Act 27. The treatment by Act 27 was held unconstitutional and declared void by the Supreme Court in Thompson v. Craney, case no.
95-2168-OA. Prior to Act 27 it read:
Effective date text
(d) Any other matters upon which the state superintendent wishes the council's opinion.
115.79(2)
(2) The council may submit a report biennially to the chief clerk of each house of the legislature, for distribution to the legislature under
s. 13.172 (2), on the progress made by special education programs and planning in the state and any other information it deems desirable.
115.79(3)
(3) The council shall have access to reports and statistics kept by the department relating to matters concerning children with exceptional educational needs.
115.80
115.80
Identifying and providing special education to children with exceptional educational needs. 115.80(1)(a)(a) A parent or a physician, nurse, teacher at a state or county residential facility, psychologist, social worker or administrator of a social agency who has reasonable cause to believe that a child brought to him or her for services has exceptional educational needs shall report the name of the child and any other information required to the school board for the district or governing body of a state or county residential facility in which the child resides or to the division, except as provided in
par. (b).
115.80(1)(b)
(b) A person who is required to be certified or licensed under
s. 115.28 (7), who is employed by the school district in which a child attends public school and who has reasonable cause to believe a child has exceptional educational needs shall report such child and any other information required to the school board.
115.80(1)(c)
(c) Before any report is made under this subsection, the person making the report shall inform the child's parent that the report will be made.
115.80(2)
(2) School district screening. Each school board is responsible for screening each child who resides in the school district and has not graduated from high school to determine if there is reasonable cause to believe that the child is a child with exceptional educational needs.
115.80(3)(a)(a) The school board shall appoint a multidisciplinary team for each child reported to it under
sub. (1) who resides in the school district and has not graduated from high school and for each child identified under
sub. (2). A multidisciplinary team shall be composed of 2 or more persons who are skilled in assessing the exceptional educational needs that a child may have and who are skilled in programming for children with exceptional educational needs. The department shall determine the method of appointing members to the team and may require that there be additional members. The number and specialties of additional members may depend on the exceptional educational needs that the particular child is believed to have. Before a child is sent from a state or county residential facility to a school district, the department may require that the team for the school district to which the child may be sent include or consult with persons appointed by the governing body of the residential facility. For the evaluation of a child who resides and is receiving education only at a state or county residential facility, the multidisciplinary team shall be appointed by and make recommendations under
pars. (c) and
(d) to the governing body of the residential facility in which the child resides.
Effective date note
NOTE: Par. (a) is shown as amended eff. 1-1-96 by
1995 Wis. Act 27. The treatment by Act 27 was held unconstitutional and declared void by the Supreme Court in Thompson v. Craney, case no.
95-2168-OA. Prior to Act 27 it read:
Effective date text
(a) The school board shall appoint a multidisciplinary team for each child reported to it under sub. (1) who resides in the school district and has not graduated from high school and for each child identified under sub. (2). A multidisciplinary team shall be composed of 2 or more persons who are skilled in assessing the exceptional educational needs that a child may have and who are skilled in programming for children with exceptional educational needs. The state superintendent shall determine the method of appointing members to the team and may require that there be additional members. The number and specialties of additional members may depend on the exceptional educational needs that the particular child is believed to have. Before a child is sent from a state or county residential facility to a school district, the state superintendent may require that the team for the school district to which the child may be sent include or consult with persons appointed by the governing body of the residential facility. For the evaluation of a child who resides and is receiving education only at a state or county residential facility, the multidisciplinary team shall be appointed by and make recommendations under pars. (c) and (d) to the governing body of the residential facility in which the child resides.
115.80(3)(b)
(b) Except as provided under
s. 115.81 (1) (b), the multidisciplinary team appointed under
par. (a) shall, upon written parental consent, evaluate each child reported to the school board under
sub. (1) who resides in the school district and has not graduated from high school and each child identified under
sub. (2).
115.80(3)(c)
(c) The multidisciplinary team shall consult with the child's parent prior to recommending a child for a special education program.
115.80(3)(d)
(d) The multidisciplinary team shall recommend a child to the school board for special education if it determines that the child is a child with exceptional educational needs.
115.80(4)
(4) Individualized education program.
