The increasing prevalence of diagnoses for autism spectrum disorder (ASD), now one in 68 children according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), presents a number of policy implications. In particular, many of these children become eligible for special education services under the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Given…

This study explored the perceptions of disability from the perspectives of Ethiopian immigrant parents who have children with disabilities. The study was guided by the research question: How do Ethiopian immigrant parents from the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, who have children between the ages of 7-17 identified with disabilities and…

This article describes the research behind and development of Play Lab, a play-based authentic learning environment for university students learning to teach children with developmental disabilities and the case study analysis from the Play Lab's first year of implementation. Data from (a) pre-development surveys which were triangulated with (b)…

The reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, December 3, 2004, (IDEA '04) and its implementing federal regulations, October 13, 2006, prompted the need to revise Virginia's special education regulations. Input was received from a Stakeholders Group that included school personnel, parents, consumers,…

In this response to Spaulding et al.'s examination of state education agency (SEA) guidance on severity ratings, these authors contend that Spaulding et al. provided an incomplete view of current practices in public schools. These authors state that, ultimately, school speech-language pathologists (SLPs) must follow all state regulations and local…

There is always room for improvement in the delivery of health services. This article discusses the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality's (AHRQ) Health Care Innovations Exchange (www.innovations.ahrq.gov), a comprehensive program that aims to increase awareness of innovative strategies to meet health service delivery challenges and…

This article discusses the problems and potential solutions surrounding foster care and adoption of handicapped children, with special focus on the situation in Virginia. The growing number of children with multiple handicaps entering foster care is cited, along with the challenge of finding foster parents for them. Social workers are advised to…

The National Capital Region (NCR) is home to more than one-and-a-half million children and youth (ages birth through 24 years). Although the NCR is known as a place with a highly transient population, if history is any guide, many of these young people will remain in this region and fundamentally shape the quality of life--not only for themselves,…

Turnover rates for rural and urban school psychologists in Virginia were determined for the years 1977-78 through 1979-80. The turnover rate for rural school psychologists is four times the rate for urban school psychologists. Remaining psychologists were more likely than those who left to have been raised in nonurban communities. (Author/ABB)

This document reports on a survey of 309 Virginians with disabilities, of all ages, concerning first, the satisfaction with and need for services, and second, the current status of efforts to increase independence, community integration, and productivity among Virginians with developmental disabilities. Individual chapters address: the survey…

United Methodist Family Services of Virginia placed 41 developmentally disabled children in adoptive homes between August 1985 and June 1988. Efforts of the program's caseworkers to find potential adoptive families and obstacles to the placement of the children, are discussed. (BG)

This report responds to requirements of Public Law 100-146, The Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act Amendments of 1987. It describes existing services to persons with developmental disabilities, reports on a consumer satisfaction survey, and presents recommendations and plans. Thirteen major findings and discussion of 16…

This manual presents information about major causes of developmental disabilities, discusses strategies to prevent development disabilities, and identifies relevant resources and reference material. Introductory information defines developmental disabilities and prevention (under Virginia statutes). The first section considers causes prior to and…

This White Paper on child care is the second of four to be published by the Action Alliance for Virginia's Children, and focuses on the affordability and availability of quality child care in Virginia. The paper states that despite federal attempts to simplify funding, funding remains complicated due to differences in the federal and state fiscal…