ARLINGTON INCLUSION TASK FORCE

“The goal of the Task Force is to educate ourselves and others about the evidence-based benefits and best practices of inclusive education, and to support Arlington Public Schools efforts to make inclusion a priority. The community must create a shared vision for inclusion.” 

Get in Touch

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ArlInclusion/
Twitter: @ArlInclusion, https://twitter.com/arlinclusion
Web: http://www.arlingtonsepta.org/inclusion-task-force/
Email: arlingtoninclusion@gmail.com

Goals

Our long-term goal is to assist APS in achieving its vision and core value of becoming a truly inclusive school district. Here are some of the practices and steps we’d like to see APS adopt and take:

• Capacity-Building:  Provide comprehensive training, hands-on support, and practical resources for administrators, educators, parents, and students alike in principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and how to otherwise ensure students with significant and complex support needs are welcomed, meaningfully included, and supported in both academic and nonacademic settings throughout the school day.
• First IEP:  Every newly-identified student with a disability should, in accordance with the law and best practice, be educated and provided with all the services, accommodations, and curricular modifications the student may require, in the APS classroom the student would attend if they did not have a disability.
• Conditioning Removal:  Students should only be removed if all supplementary aids and services have been attempted in the regular education setting and failed.
• Accommodate Family Wishes:  Families should not have to fight for greater inclusion for their children.

Actions and Contributions

• Developing talking points on inclusion in Arlington Public Schools
• Reviewing the 2019 and 2013 external evaluations of APS special education programs and excerpting inclusion-related points
• Collecting individual stories about inclusion in Arlington
• Developing connections with state and national leaders on inclusion
• Compiling and summarizing research on inclusion
• Sharing best practices and news on inclusion through our member list, the SEPTA listserve, Facebook, and Twitter
• Speaking at state and national conferences
• Meeting regularly with APS School Board members, senior APS staff, and school principals
• Forming parent-to-parent support and mentoring networks
• Fundraising for professional development seminars on inclusion for APS teachers and staff

Selected Events

• May 4, 2018 – ITF hosts Inclusion Roundtable with Virginia Secretary of Education Atif Qarni, Arlington, VA
• March 5, 2018 – ITF presents to Hanover County Public Schools Special Education Advisory Committee, Ashland, VA
• February 3, 2018 – ITF co-presents on “Writing an Inclusive IEP,” Down Syndrome Association of Greater Richmond Annual Conference, Richmond, VA
• May 25, 2017 – ITF provides briefing packet for School Board members in preparation for Work Session on Inclusion and ATSS
• March 18, 2017 – ITF and SEPTA co-host full-day professional development workshop for APS staff: “Inclusion,” by Cheryl Jorgensen, Ph.D.
• December 15, 2016 – ITF presents to District of Columbia State Advisory Panel on Special Education, Washington, D.C.
• November 19, 2016 – ITF provides invited remarks at ribbon-cutting for Arlington’s first universally-designed playground, Quincy Park
• September 9, 2016 – ITF organizes meeting to discuss inclusion with APS senior staff and U.S. Department of Education Assistant Secretary for Special Education Sue Swenson
• August 8, 2016 – ITF participates in panel on “Inclusive Education Advocacy in Virginia,” Arc of Virginia State Convention, Williamsburg, VA
• July 21-23, 2016 – ITF and APS staff attend SWIFT Professional Learning Institute on Inclusive Education, Crystal City, VA
• June 9, 2016 – ITF invited to participate in VDOE workgroup discussion on inclusive education in Virginia, Richmond, VA
• April 15, 2016 – ITF organizes dinner for APS School Board and ITF members with Chicago-based national inclusion expert Patrick Schwarz
• December 4, 2015 – ITF participates in panel presentation: “Starting a Statewide or Local Inclusion Task Force,” TASH Annual Conference, Portland, OR
• November 14, 2015 – ITF and SEPTA co-host full-day professional development workshop for APS staff: “Including ALL Students: Why and How,” by Maryland Coalition for Inclusive Education (MCIE) staff 
  • SEPTA Members can access professional video of the workshop and the slides and handouts here.  (You’ll need to be logged in as a SEPTA member to access this page. Anyone can join SEPTA – join here!)
• September 21, 2015 – ITF presents to Arlington Special Education Advisory Committee (ASEAC)
• August 12, 2015 – ITF participates on Inclusive Education panel with VDOE and Dan Habib, Arc of Virginia State Convention, Virginia Beach, VA
• June 15, 2015 – ITF organizes peer-to-peer meeting for APS Executive Team with Illinois-based school district leader Kurt Schneider
• April 24, 2015 – ITF invited to participate in TASH webinar: “Making Change Happen in Your State”
• April 21, 2015 – ITF hosts Barb Trader, then-Executive Director, TASH, “The Ethical and Economic Imperatives of Inclusive Education: Why We Need to Act Now”
• April 14, 2015 – ITF hosts U.S. Health and Human Services for focus group discussion regarding then-forthcoming national preschool inclusion guidance
• January 15, 2015 – ITF and SEPTA co-sponsor Hank Millward, Virginia Department of Education, “What VDOE Expects Regarding Inclusion”
• December 4, 2014 – ITF hosts Deirdre Hickey Sturm, BCBA, CCC-SLP, “How Inclusion Works”
• August 24, 2014 – ITF hosts screening and discussion of Including Samuel

Resources

Articles, Reports and Guidance

In addition to the resources below, check out our frequently-updated Facebook page for more great resources on inclusive education and disability inclusion more generally.

Virginia-Related

• Virginia Department of Education K-12 Inclusive Practices Guide (Fall 2019)
• Virginia Department of Education, Virginia Guidelines for Early Childhood Inclusion (April 2018)
• Virginia Board for People with Disabilities, 2017 Assessment of Disability Services in Virginia Education (Annual Report to the Governor)

APS-Related

• Data regarding students with disabilities in APS (this is a living GoogleDoc created and maintained by the Arlington Inclusion Task Force; please send additions, updates, and corrections to arlingtoninclusion@gmail.com)
• 2019 external evaluation of APS special education programs
• 2013 external evaluation of APS special education programs

General/Overview/Why

• TIES Center, “Debunking Myths about Inclusive Education for Students with the Most Significant Cognitive Disabilities“ (February 2022)
• U.S. National Council on Disability, The Segregation of Students with Disabilities (February 2018)
• Tim Villegas, Think Inclusive, “The 8 Most Atrocious Myths About Inclusive Education” (January 2015)
• Virginia Board for People with Disabilities, 2017 Assessment of Disability Services in Virginia Education (Annual Report to the Governor)
• Cheryl Jorgensen, “The Least Dangerous Assumption: A Challenge to Create a New Paradigm” (2005)
• Amy Sequenzia, “Non-speaking, low-functioning”
• Catia Malaquias / Starting with Julius, “3 Myths of ’Special Education’ – Thoughts for Parents”

Research

• Thomas Hehir et al., A Summary of the Evidence on Inclusive Education (2016) 
• National Catholic Board on Full Inclusion, “Research that Supports Inclusion” 
• Harold Kleinert et al., “Where Students with the Most Significant Cognitive Disabilities Are Taught: Implications for General Curriculum Access” (finding that 93 percent of students who took the alternate assessment were served in segregated placements; also finding statistically significant, negative correlation between a student’s use of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) and inclusion; and describing another study finding that only 3 percent of students taking alternate assessments were included at least 80 percent of the day)

Best Practices/Techniques

• “10 Steps to Implementing Effective Inclusive Practices A Guide for School Site Leaders,” Louisiana State Personnel Development Grant, Louisiana Department of Education
• Universal Design for Learning
  • What It Is, from the UDL Center
  • UDL Guidelines, from CAST
  • 5 Examples of UDL, from Understood.org
• Carol Dweck Revisits the Growth Mindset
• National Education Association, “Teaching Students with Autism – A Guide for Educators”
• Hussman Institute for Autism, “Presume Competence: A guide to successful, evidence‐based principles for supporting and engaging individuals with autism” (December 2017)
• U.S. National Council on Disability, Beyond Guardianship: Toward Alternatives That Promote Greater Self-Determination (March 2018)
• Maryland Coalition for Inclusive Education, “5 Ways to Support Youth with Disabilities in Transition Planning” (March 2018)
• Thurber, A., & Bandy, J., Vanderbilt University, “Creating Accessible Learning Environments” (2018)

Preschool / Early Childhood

• Virginia Department of Education, Virginia Guidelines for Early Childhood Inclusion (April 2018)
• U.S. Department of Education, Guidance on Preschool Least Restrictive Environment (January 2017)
  • “An LEA may provide special education and related services to a preschool child with a disability in a variety of settings, including a regular kindergarten class, public or private preschool program, community-based child care facility, or in the child’s home.“ (p. 4)
  • “These methods may include: (1) providing opportunities for the participation of preschool children with disabilities in preschool programs operated by public agencies other than LEAs (such as Head Start or community-based child care); (2) enrolling preschool children with disabilities in private preschool programs for nondisabled preschool children; (3) locating classes for preschool children with disabilities in regular public elementary schools; or (4) providing home-based services. If a public agency determines that placement in a private preschool program is necessary for a child to receive FAPE, the public agency must make that program available at no cost to the parent.“ (p. 4)
• U.S. Departments of Education and Health and Human Services, Policy Statement on Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in Early Childhood Education Programs (September 2015)

Books 

• Undoing Ableism: Teaching About Disability in K-12 Classrooms by Susan Baglieri & Priya Lalvani (2019) (Amazon)
• Leading for Social Justice: Transforming Schools for All Learners by Elise Frattura & Colleen Capper (2007) (Amazon)
• Meeting the Needs of Students of ALL Abilities: How Leaders Go Beyond Inclusion by Colleen Capper & Elise Frattura, 2nd ed. (2008) (Amazon)
• It’s More than “Just Being In” Creating Authentic Inclusion for Students with Complex Support Needs by Cheryl Jorgensen (2018) (Amazon)
• Don’t We Already Do Inclusion? 100 Ideas for Improving Inclusive Schools by Paula Kluth (2013) (Amazon)
• The Principal’s Handbook for Leading Inclusive Schools by Julie Causton & George Theoharis (2014) (Amazon)
• Effective Inclusive Schools: Designing Effective Schoolwide Programs by Thomas Hehir (2012) (Amazon)
• Creating an Inclusive School, Richard Villa & Jacqueline Thousand, eds. (2005) (Amazon)
• The Paraprofessional’s Handbook for Effective Support in Inclusive Classrooms by Julie Causton-Theoharis (2009) (Amazon)
• The Inclusion Toolbox: Strategies and Techniques for All Teachers by Jennifer Kurth & Megan Gross (2014) (Amazon)
• You’re Going to Love This Kid! Teaching Students with Autism in the Inclusive Classroom by Paula Kluth, 2nd ed. (2010) (Amazon)
• Inclusion in Action: Practical Strategies to Modify Your Curriculum by Nicole Eredics (2018) (Amazon)

Videos

• “My Disability Roadmap” (award-winning documentary short made by Samuel Habib and Dan Habib about Samuel’s quest for disabled role models) (open-captioned) (22:00)
• “This Is Not About Me” (documentary about the educational experience of Jordyn Zimmerman, a nonspeaking autistic woman who went from a completely segregated placement to full inclusion and earning an M.Ed. in curriculum and instruction) (closed-captioned) (60:00)
• “LISTEN: A short film made by and with nonspeaking autistics” (award-winning short by CommunicationFIRST) (open-captioned) (5:23)
• “How To Be Successful Advocating for Inclusion” (one-hour webinar with Ricki Sabia of the National Down Syndrome Congress and Charmaine Thaner, focused on supporting students with significant cognitive disabilities who take the alternate assessment in the regular education setting) (open-captioned) (1:06:31)
• “My Needs Aren’t Special” (amusing commercial about the fallacy of “special needs”) (open-captioned) (2:00)
• “Oregon school district includes all students with disabilities in regular classes” (KING-5 TV News segment about West Linn-Wilsonville School District) (closed-captioned) (6:55)
• “We All Belong” (parents and children discussing reasons to include students with disabilities) (closed-captioned) (14:30)
• Cheryl Jorgensen describing the “Least Dangerous Assumption” (31:17)
• “The Backwards Brain Bicycle” (open-captioned) (7:58)
• “Disabling Segregation” (Dan Habib TEDx Talk) (open-captioned) (17:57)
• “Grading People” (about “low-functioning” and “high-functioning” labels) (open-captioned) (8:11)
• Carol Dweck’s “Growth Mindset” (9:59)
• “Don’t Limit Me” (video by high school student with Down Syndrome, Megan Bomgaars) (open-captioned) (4:18)
• “Thasya” (video about full inclusion of elementary nonspeaking autistic student) (open-captioned) (13:20)
• “Axel” (video about full inclusion of elementary nonspeaking autistic student) (open-captioned) (16:32)
• “Intelligent Lives” (trailer for Dan Habib film about intellectual disability) (open-captioned) (14:45)
• “Including Samuel” (trailer for Dan Habib film about school inclusion) (open-captioned) (12:00)
• “Mr. Connolly Has ALS” (trailer for Dan Habib film about principal of inclusive high school) (open-captioned) (1:41)
• “Deej: Inclusion Shouldn’t be a Lottery” (2018 Peabody Award-winning documentary about Oberlin College’s first nonspeaking autistic student)
• “Judy Heumann Fights for People with Disabilities“ (2018 Comedy Central Drunk History episode about the history of the Section 504 regulations) (contains adult language) (closed-captioned) (7:55)
• Universal Design for Learning at a Glance (closed-captioned) (4:37)
• UDL: Principles and Practice (closed-captioned) (6:37)
• “Inclusion: Ruby’s Story” (Ruby’s story of inclusion and acceptance in the Lakeville Area Public Schools, MN) (closed-captioned) (3:08)
• “Inclusive Learning: Everyone’s In” (practices and techniques used in inclusive Edmonton Public Schools) (closed-captioned) (11:13)
• All the videos on this Ollibean page: https://ollibean.com/category/inclusion-videos/
• Kristie Patten 2022 Slagle Lecture to the American Occupational Therapy Association (2022)

Inclusive Education Conferences and Training Opportunities

• University of Wisconsin – Madison School of Education Annual National Integrated Comprehensive Systems for Equity Institute & Academy (Madison, Wisconsin) (summer)
• TASH Annual Conference (location varies) (usually in November or December)
• PEAK Parent Center Annual Conference on Inclusive Education (Colorado) (usually in February)
• All Born (in) Annual Best Practices in Educational Inclusion Conference (Portland, Oregon) (usually in April)
• Down Syndrome Association of Greater Richmond Annual Conference (Richmond) (usually in February)
• Syracuse University Summer Leadership Institute (Syracuse, New York) (summer)

Universal and Accessible Building Design

• US Department of Justice, Guidance on Accessible Building Design for State and Local Government Entities
• US Department of Justice Letter of Findings Regarding Inaccessibility of New York City Public School Buildings (Dec. 21, 2015) and Exhibit A: Detailed List of ADA Violations Found
• North Carolina State University, Center for Universal Design, “The Principles of Universal Design” & “History of Universal Design”
• National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities, “Planning and Designing for Students with Disabilities” 
• FacilitiesNet, “Accessibility for One and All” 
• The City of New York, “Universal Design New York” 
• Centre for Excellence in Universal Design, “Shared Education Campuses” & “Building for Everyone” 
• University of Washington, “Universal Design in Education” & “Equal Access: Universal Design of Physical Spaces” 
• Centers
  • Center for Inclusive Design and Environmental Access, School of Architecture and Planning – University at Buffalo, The State University of New York
  • Center for Universal Design in Education, University of Washington
  • Centre for Excellence in Universal Design, National Disability Authority (Ireland)

Notes on Language and Terminology

• Person-first (person with autism, deafness, Down Syndrome) vs. Identity-first (autistic, deaf)
  • Some individuals with disabilities (often individuals with Down Syndrome, ALS, Tourette’s, cerebral palsy, intellectual disabilities, and genetic disorders) strongly prefer “person-first” language (e.g., “I am a person with Down Syndrome” or “I have CP”), while other individuals (typically autistic, Deaf, and Deafblind individuals) strongly prefer “identity-first” language (“I am autistic”).
  • Those who prefer identity-first labels believe that person-first language stigmatizes the disability or makes it sound negative and believe that the disability is a central part of who they are.
• Low-functioning/High-functioning
  • Avoid these terms entirely! They are rarely helpful and often damaging.
  • Would you describe anyone as “low-functioning” to their face?
  • What do you mean by “low-functioning” and “high-functioning? What do those terms imply? Something about intelligence? Independence? Self-care? Productivity? Physical disability? Mental illness? Is a deaf person who needs an ASL interpreter at all times “low-functioning”? What about a blind person? What about Stephen Hawking? What about a math genius who is socially awkward?
• “Special needs”
  • The euphemistic term “special needs” is often used by parents of individuals with disabilities, but adults with disabilities generally reject that term and prefer the term “people with disabilities.”  
  • Why? The needs of people with disabilities are not “special” – like people without disabilities, they need and desire a challenging education with high expectations, equal access, meaningful membership in the community, friendship, love, and to be respected and not discriminated against.
  • People with “special needs” have no legal rights, while people with “disabilities” do, under a variety of laws.
  • People with “special needs” are automatically regarded as different and thus are often isolated and marginalized. Because they are “special,” they are often thought to need “special” places, like segregated classrooms, programs, schools, and institutions, when in reality, they just need people to welcome and support them in society.  
  • “All people have needs. When their needs are met, all people live their lives well. All people receive help to see their needs met from time to time. Our society works on shared ideas, spaces and resources. Assisting a non-disabled person to see their needs met is not perceived as heroic, patient or inherently good. It is called living life in community.” – Michelle Sutton (2016)
• Avoid the term “severe” when describing a person with a disability.
  • There is nothing positive about this term. It is stigmatizing, othering, and dehumanizing. Try “person with significant/complex support needs” instead. Reorient the discussion to the supports the person needs to access the service or activity, rather than on deficits that imply the person could never succeed.

Get Involved

To be added to the Arlington Inclusion Task Force email list and to learn about opportunities to get involved, email us at: arlingtoninclusion@gmail.com.