Welcome to INSOURCE - the Indiana Resource Center for Families with Special Needs

Welcome to INSOURCE - the Indiana Resource Center for families with Special Needs.

Since 1975, the Indiana Resource Center for Families with Special Needs or INSOURCE has provided service to Indiana's families of infants, toddlers, children, youth and young adults with disabilities.

INSOURCE is a parent organization. Through the work and dedication of the Board of Directors, the staff and many volunteers, virtually all of whom are parents of persons with disabilities, INSOURCE, utilizing a proven parent to parent model, has provided quality assistance and support services and educational resources to the community of individuals and organizations that serve and support persons with disabilities. We have worked to help countless families confront the complexities and what are often the challenges of having a loved one with special needs.

INSOURCE celebrates the accomplishments of individuals with disabilities and their families and we affirm our ongoing commitment to them.

Parent Survey 2009-2010

All parents of Indiana’s 171,000 students receiving special education services should receive a survey sometime between the second week of August 2010 and the end of the week that school starts. This survey contains 31 questions designed to measure parent satisfaction with their experience in working with education staff at their children’s school and the special education services their children received during the 2009-10 school year. Parents will receive a letter in a white business-sized envelope from their children’s school containing information about how to complete the survey on-line. Parents without Internet access may complete the paper copy of the survey included in the envelope or call a designated toll-free number. Since only parents of students receiving special education services are eligible to complete the survey, each survey envelope will contain a unique survey identification code.

By August 6, each Special Education Planning District Director in Indiana will receive a shipment of survey letters to be distributed to parents by mail or in person from school personnel. Some survey letters may also be sent home with the children receiving special education services. If parents do not receive a survey by September 10, they should request one by contacting the person at their children’s school responsible for overseeing the special education services their children receive.

The survey will take about five minutes to complete and all individual responses will be kept confidential. It is important for all parents to complete this survey so that the Indiana Department of Education and Indiana’s School Districts can improve the quality of special education services provided to Hoosier children and their families. The results of this survey will be sent by the Indiana Department of Education to the U.S. Department of Education to fulfill federal legal requirements under Indicator 8 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act.

ADA Video Nationwide Video Contest

To commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the National Disability Institute is launching “Economic Empowerment-Defining the New American Dream,” a nationwide video contest open to all persons with disabilities. The National Disability Institute wants to hear from persons with disabilities, veterans with disabilities, and family members of persons with disabilities on what their American Dream is and how they are working to achieve it. Individuals can create a 3-minute video that tells the story of how they are working to achieve their American Dream, whether it is to buy a home, have a job, go to school, or start their own business. One Grand Prize winner will receive $1,000 and a trip to Washington, DC, where their winning video will be viewed at NDI’s Real Economic Impact Tour’s Annual Kick-off at the National Press Club on October 19, 2010. Deadline for entries: August 13, 2010.

Article 7 Update: BSEA

The repeal of the second tier Board of Special Education Appeals (BSEA) review became effective on June 24, 2010. Any hearing requested after that date will be part of the single tier process, subject to judicial review.

NEW VIDEOS ENCOURAGES SPECIAL ED STUDENTS TO PARTICIPATE IN STATE OUTCOME SURVEY

To help educators improve services for students with disabilities who are still in school, every state is conducting a survey to find out what students who received special education services are doing one year after leaving high school. To help increase response rates, the National Post-School Outcomes Center has announced the launch of "Be a Superstar-Take the Survey" available at http://www.psocenter.org/data_collection.html and http://www.youtube.com/pacercenter. These fun YouTube videos were designed to encourage students and families to complete post-school outcomes surveys. Prepared in collaboration with PACER Center, versions are available for youth and parents in both English and Spanish. State Education Agencies, local school districts, parent centers, and advocacy organizations are encouraged to add a link to these videos to their websites. Check them out!

NATIONAL FAMILY SUPPORT SURVEY

You are invited to be in a national research study of supports for families of youth with disabilities. This National Survey is for the parent or primary caregiver of a young person with disabilities between 12 and 22 years old. If you qualify, please click on the above link to partake in this research study. The opportunity to participate in this National Research Study ends August 13, 2010.

Your answers to the questions on the National Family Support Survey are confidential and will help the Administration on Developmental Disabilities, parent centers, and researchers understand the information and supports families need to prepare for moving into adulthood.

The information you share is extremely valuable and may help to inform program development for youth with disabilities in the future. We encourage you to participate and greatly appreciate your time.

POST SECONDARY SURVEY

If you have a son or daughter who had an IEP and who completed school during the 2008-2009 school year, he or she may be contacted by the Center for Evaluation and Education Policy (CEEP) of Indiana University and asked to complete a brief survey. The survey takes a short time and asks simple questions such as whether the individual is going to school or working. The responses are confidential and your student’s identity will not be known when the results are compiled.

This information is required by the U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and Indiana reports the data in their Annual Performance Report. While participation in this survey is voluntary, it is very important and could help to improve secondary programs leading to better employment and postsecondary outcomes for youth with disabilities.

Students will be contacted by letters and follow-up phone calls in the very near future. Since all states must submit the survey analysis and report by the end of September, the actual survey process will need to be completed by the end of August. Your son or daughter’s participation is important and will be valued and appreciated.

ARTICLE 7 TRAINING NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE!

Click here or on the "On-line Courses" link under INSOURCE Training tab to view.

Listen to the INSOURCE podcast Podcast logo

Connect with other parents through the INSOURCE Facebook Group. Weigh in on timely discussions, post comments on disability issues or ask other parents for assistance at the new INSOURCE Facebook Group.

Facebook members may join here. If you are not already a Facebook member, sign up for FREE at www.facebook.com.

Welcome to INSOURCE - The Indiana Resource Center for Special Needs

About INSOURCE