THE STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT / THE UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
THE STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT / THE UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
April 2004
Click here to print in Word or PDF Format
APPLICATION FOR EXCEPTION TO THE ONE PERCENT CAP
ON PROFICIENT OR ABOVE SCORES
BASED ON ALTERNATE ACHIEVEMENT STANDARDS
Accountability under the No Child Left Behind Act for certain students with severe cognitive disabilities is based on performance on the New York State Alternate Assessment (NYSAA). Federal regulations have set a cap of one percent on the number of students in a local educational agency (LEA) whose scores can be counted as proficient using alternate standards based on an alternate assessment. Through this application, the Department is providing LEAs that document extraordinary circumstances the opportunity to apply for an exception to exceed the one percent cap for one to three years, beginning with the 2003-04 school year.
| Authorization to Grant Exceptions The New York State Education Department (NYSED) is authorized to grant an exception to an LEA, permitting it to exceed the 1.0 percent cap in counting as proficient and advanced for school accountability the scores of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities based on alternate academic achievement standards. The State may grant an exception if the LEA’s request is consistent with the conditions outlined in paragraph (c)(2) of section 200.13 of the federal regulations. (34 CFR Part 200 of Title I – Improving the Academic Achievement of the Disadvantaged; Final Rule, section 200.13). To be eligible for an exception to the 1.0 percent cap, the LEA must:
The Department will directly notify any LEA that requires an exception based on its small overall student population. These are the LEAs where it would take very few students with disabilities to exceed the 1.0 percent cap. Such LEAs do not need to complete this application. If an exception is granted, it will be only for small increments above the 1.0 percent cap and for a specified period of time, not to exceed three years beginning with the 2003-04 school year. |
Application Submission Information
Eligible Applicants:
A local educational agency (LEA) (including a Charter School and a Special Act School District) that is subject to the New York State System of Accountability for Student Success (SASS) may submit an application for an exception. (Programs not subject to SASS do not need to apply. Such programs include BOCES, State-operated programs, State-supported programs, approved private schools and other State agency educational programs.)
Due Date:
Applications must be postmarked or submitted electronically by May 25, 2004. Applications received after May 25, 2004 will not be considered.
Applications should be sent to:
|
New York State Education Department |
|
Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities |
|
Strategic Evaluation Data Collection, Analysis and Reporting (SEDCAR) Unit |
|
Room 1624 One Commerce Plaza |
|
Albany, NY 12234 |
|
ATTN: Application for Cap Exception |
|
Fax (518) 408-3363 |
Applicants will be notified of approval/disapproval of the exception request by June 15, 2004.
Questions regarding the application may be directed to (518) 473-2878.
Application For Exception to the One Percent Cap
|
Local Educational Agency: __________________________________________________ Mailing Address: _________________________________________________________ Telephone Number: _______________________________________________________ Fax Number: ____________________________________________________________ Contact Person: __________________________________________________________ Email of Contact Person: ___________________________________________________ Date Submitted: __________________________________________________________ |
Conditions to Apply
A LEA may submit an "Application For Exception to the One Percent Cap" only if it meets one or both of the following criteria. (Check those that apply)
□ The number of Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (OMRDD) licensed residential programs (e.g., Intermediate Care Facilities; Individualized Residential Alternatives) or other similar community or health organizations located within the district have resulted in a large percentage of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities.
□ The LEA has very specialized programs for students with severe disabilities, resulting in a large number of families of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities residing in the district.
Department Review of Data
The Department will review LEA data on file that documents that the incidence of students participating in the NYSAA exceeds 1.0 percent of all students in the combined grades assessed and the LEA’s counts of school-age students with disabilities by particular disabilities and classification rates.
Application Narrative (attach additional pages if necessary):
Time period of the exception request (not to exceed three years):
□ 2003-2004
□ 2004-2005
□ 2005-2006
Assurances:
The signature of the school superintendent, or the chief administrative official in the case of a Charter School, on the application constitutes an assurance that the school district is fully and effectively addressing the requirements of 34 CFR Part 200, section 200.6(a)(2)(iii):
□ The LEA implements clear and appropriate guidelines,
consistent with the November 2003 State Education Department guidelines
Identification of Students Eligible for the 2003–04 NYSAA*, for the
Committee on Special Education (CSE) to use to determine when a child’s
significant cognitive disability justifies the alternate assessment based on
alternate academic achievement standards.
(* see
http://www.vesid.nysed.gov/specialed/alterassessment/identnysaa.htm)
□ Parents are informed that their child will be assessed based on alternate achievement standards, including information about the implications of participation in the alternate assessment.
□ Students with the most significant cognitive disabilities are included, to the extent possible, in the general curriculum and assessments aligned with that curriculum.
□ The LEA disseminates information and promotes the use of appropriate accommodations to increase the number of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities who are tested against grade-level academic achievement standards.
□ Regular and special education teachers and other appropriate staff are knowledgeable about the administration of assessments, including making appropriate use of accommodations for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities.
| Typed Name of Superintendent of Schools or Chief
Administrative Official of Charter School: ______________________________________________________________ Signature: ________________________________________________________________ Date of Submission: _________________________________________________________ |
| For NYSED Use Only Exception Granted: □ YES □ NO | |
| If yes, cap percentage approved: | ______________________________________________ |
| Time period of exception approved: | _______________________________________________ |
| Date of approval: | ________________________________________________ |
| SED Authorizing Signature: | ________________________________________________ |
| Copies to: | |
| □ SEDCAR | |
| □ Regional Associate | |
| □ Information and Reporting Services | |
| □ File | |
CRITERIA FOR REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF EXCEPTION REQUESTS
□ There is clear evidence that the LEA has more than 1.0 percent of its enrolled student population taking the New York State Alternate Assessment for Students with Severe Disabilities.
□ The Department will programmatically review Exception Requests in consideration of:
□ LEA incidence data, particularly the classification rates of students with mental retardation and multiple disabilities. (The national incidence of children with mental retardation is 1.13 percent of all students, with approximately 1/3 of that percentage functioning in the severe/profound range.)
□ LEA incidence data in other disabilities that may include students with significant cognitive disabilities (traumatic brain injury, autism, deaf-blind).
□ Documentation submitted by the LEA regarding OMRDD licensed facilities includes sufficient verifiable information, such as the names of the facilities and the numbers and descriptions of the students placed in such facilities.
□ Documentation submitted by the LEA regarding specialized education programs that attract large numbers of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities is credible and persuasive and describes the characteristics and the numbers of students served in such program.
□ Submission of a complete application, which includes the original or electronic signature of the Superintendent of Schools.