Special Education Programs and Services

The Clover Park School District provides a free appropriate public education for eligible special education students as provided for in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). We serve students with disabilities from ages 3 to 22 and offer a full continuum of placement options. Parents, students, and staff are all members of the Individualized Education Program Team and work together to determine the appropriate educational program for the child. 

Please contact 253-583-5170 for access to these policies and procedures.

Child Find Obligation to the Community

The purpose of Child Find is to locate, evaluate, and identify youth ages birth to twenty-two, who need special education and related services, regardless of the severity of their disability. Activities are designed to reach students who are homeless, wards of the state, highly mobile, migrants, and those who are suspected of having a disability and being in need of special education. Child Find activities extend to students residing within the district boundaries whether or not they are enrolled in the public school system; students (kindergarten through grade twelve) attending nonprofit private elementary or secondary schools located within the school district boundaries shall also be located, identified, and evaluated consistent with WAC 392-172A-04005.

Child Find Screenings

Ages Three to Five

Your child may be eligible for a FREE developmental screening if:

• Ages 2 years, 10 months to 5 years old (after August 31)

• Not enrolled in a Clover Park School program

• Reside within the Clover Park Boundaries

To schedule a developmental screening for children ages three to five, complete a Screening Registration Form English | Spanish.

For more information regarding developmental screenings for children younger than age three, contact Early Support for Infants and Toddlers (ESIT) for Pierce County at 253-798-3790.

Concerns about children already enrolled in the Clover Park School District?

If you have concerns for your child’s development, you may request a referral for a special education evaluation. The referral process begins with a stakeholder of the child identifying a student not currently eligible for service who is perceived as having a suspected disability. Referrals should be made in writing (except for individuals who are unable to write in English). Referrals will be immediately reported to the school psychologist and acknowledged by the team to the referent. The parents/guardian must be notified and offered an opportunity to participate in all meetings with respect to the identification, evaluation, educational placement, and provision of free and appropriate education (FAPE) for the student. Any student between the ages of 3 and 21 who has not graduated from high school, and who resides within the school district, may be referred for a suspected disability. Members of the building team, which must include all appropriate specialists, e.g., SLP, OT, PT, Vision, Deaf/Hard of Hearing, and teachers, have 25 school days to respond with a decision, either for or against, an evaluation. During this period, the following shall occur: file review, contact with referring source, observation, and review of past and present interventions.

Students transferring into the district with an IEP

Students eligible for special education services who enter the Clover Park School District will continue to be provided services appropriately established in their IEP. If not provided at the time of enrollment, the Special Education Office will facilitate the procurement of records and a determination regarding program placement will be made based on collaborative process between the school psychologist and applicable special education administrator.

We proudly honor the Military Interstate Children’s Compact (MIC 3) and work to make the enrollment and records request process as seamless as possible for our military families.

Early Childhood Education

Early Childhood Education is provided through Head Start, the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP), Early Head Start, and Title I for general education students and through special education preschool programs for students with special needs. For more information, visit our Early Childhood Education page.

Health Services

Student Services assists schools with:

• determining the appropriate level of nursing services needed

• providing quarterly health clerk training

• registered nurse supervision of medication administration

• updates on immunization information and technical assistance (go to immunization page)

• student health care plans

• vision, hearing and scoliosis screening

• and dental resources

Home Hospital

Eligible students receive instruction at home by a teacher who coordinates the home instruction with the students' regular teachers. This is a limited service, usually 4 - 18 weeks for a couple of hours each week.

Schools or parents can contact the Student Services office for eligibility requirements and forms, or download the Home Hospital forms here.

Section 504

Special Education can assist you with accommodation plans and other support for students with disabilities. Procedures and forms are available from the Special Education office. Click here to learn more about your rights under Section 504.

Records Requests

To order copies of special education records, please contact 253-583-5181 or email spedrecords@cloverpark.k12.wa.us. Fax number is 253-583-5188.

Special Education Records Notification

In compliance with the Office of the Secretary of State, Washington State Archives/Public Schools Records Retention schedule, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) regulations on destruction of data collected, maintained or used in the provision of a free and appropriate public education of students with disabilities in the District's schools and per WAC 392-172A-05235, the Clover Park School District Special Education Department will retain Special Education records for six years after a student withdraws from the district or is exited from services.

A former special education student or parent of a former special education student may obtain these records prior to destruction by contacting the Special Education Records Office at 253-583-5181, 10903 Gravelly Lake Drive SW, Lakewood, WA 98499 or spedrecords@cloverpark.k12.wa.us

Who to Contact

Name	Position
Jennifer Herbold	Executive Director of Special Education
Rebecca Ho	Health Services Manager
Dr. Haley Brown	Assistant Director of Special Education, Elementary Schools
Megan Nelson	Assistant Director of Special Education, Middle and High Schools
Bevin Hall	Assistant Director of Special Education, Behavioral Support
James Alyson	Assistant Director of Early Learning

 

All staff can be reached by calling (253) 571-5170

Contact Jennifer Herbold, Executive Director of Special Education .