Blending Leadership and Service to State Agencies
The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) Amendments of 2004 authorize technical assistance to help state education agencies (SEAs), Part C lead agencies (LAs), and their partners plan and implement systemic change. The Regional Resource Centers are funded to provide such technical assistance, as well as to serve as a link among SEAs, LAs, and appropriate technical assistance providers at the national, state, and local levels.
NERRC does its part by providing technical assistance and information to:
- support states in the Northeast in building capacity to improve early intervention, educational, and transitional services and results for children with disabilities and their families; and
- address goals and priorities for changing state systems that provide early intervention, educational, and transitional services for children with disabilities and their families.
Creating Impact Through Networks
NERRC is a member of the Office of Special Education Programs-funded Technical Assistance and Dissemination (TA&D) Network that delivers targeted, accessible, research-based information and support to state and local agencies as they work to improve outcomes for infants, toddlers, children and youth with disabilities and their families.
The Regional Resource Center (RRC) Network brings value-added technical assistance to states by:
- expanding the depth, quality, and scope of information, knowledge, and expertise available to any single region or any single state;
- assuring continuity and consistency in communication regarding federal policy initiatives across the Northeastern states and the United States;
- facilitating the scaling-up of evidence-based practices from federal, to regional, to state, to local levels;
- expanding each individual RRC?s capacity by providing access to the expertise, knowledge, and resources in the other five RRCs; and
- providing a regional infrastructure to coordinate technical assistance and to extend the reach of the OSEP-funded specialty and research centers.
Collaboration and Communication
NERRC coordinates a number of regional workgroups involving representatives from the state departments of education and lead agencies for Part C in each of our eight states. The workgroups give state staff a forum to discuss current issues, share promising practices, and exchange information of relevance to the education of children with disabilities and the implementation of IDEA.
Our Regional Work Groups
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Legal and Regulatory Workgroup
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Northeast Transition Workgroup
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Partnerships with Parent Centers Workgroup
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Part C Coordinators Workgroup
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Personnel Preparation & Development Workgroup
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Regional Monitoring State-to-Local Work Group ? Both Part B & Part C Workgroup
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Section 619 Coordinators Workgroup
Building a Bridge Between General and Special Education
When special education and general education unite, everyone benefits. NERRC is working toward helping states build an educational system that has the capacity to be responsive to the diverse needs of all students. NERRC does this by:
- promoting increased collaboration between and integration of general education with special education in our work with states and, through them, local school districts;
- making connections for our clients between overall school improvement efforts and the need to consider the interests of children with disabilities and other diverse student groups. NERRC staff model this for clients by working together in teams with both general education and special education representation, whenever possible and practical;
- developing products that offer both perspectives; and
- hosting events in collaboration with other technical assistance providers in the region and inviting general and special education staff.
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