This article features Melmark New England, a private, nonprofit, community based organization dedicated to serving children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders, acquired brain injury, neurological diseases and disorders, and severe challenging behaviors. The Melmark parent corporation, a Pennsylvania based provider of services for those…

The Autism Program at Camarillo State Hospital and Developmental Center (California) has implemented "deinstitutionalization" within a large facility by providing effective and appropriate treatment based on individual needs. This paper describes the design of treatment services, quality assurance mechanisms, medical care (including…

Adventure Bound is a residential program for disturbed/delinquent adolescents designed to promote self discovery through physical activities that are demanding and stressful. The underlying theory of Adventure Bound is that many of the principles of Outward Bound can be modified and utilized in programs for delinquents. The initial 2-year program…

Marnie is a resident of an unnamed School District ("the District"). In January 2000 at the age of 13, Marnie was involved in a bicycle accident that severely damaged her central nervous system, leaving her without use of her legs or left hand and cognitively impaired. She had not received special education previously. By September 2001,…

The background, organization, and operation of the Alaska Psychiatric Institute (API), a residential program for behavior disordered and emotionally disturbed children and adolescents, are described. Components of the educational program at API, including academic and social assessment, individual education plans, and elementary and secondary…

The first year of operation of the Eufaula Adjustment Center, a residential facility of the Alabama Department of Mental Health, is described and evaluated in this report. The Center's approach is based on the concept that certain mental illnesses are the result of having learned inadequate or inappropriate coping skills and behavior rather than…

A study evaluated the effectiveness of a residential program, based on the TEACCH model, in improving the program quality and adaptation of 32 adolescents and adults with autism and severe disabilities. Participants experienced an increase in structure and individualized programming in several areas, and the families were significantly more…

Focusing on program development and evaluation, this document presents the summative evaluation of the community development component of the Mountain-Plains Career Education Model IV, a residential, family-based education program developed to improve the economic potential and lifestyle of selected student families in a six-state area. The report…

This report presents findings of a Minnesota study group which reviewed the costs and structures under which developmental disabilities services are provided. The group conducted a series of town meetings throughout the state and concluded with a toll-free call-in day. Six themes emerged from the meetings: (1) "We have a lot to be proud of…

This first document in a three-volume summative evaluation report presents a portion of the internal evaluation conducted by the Mountain-Plains program, a residential, family-based education program developed to improve the economic potential and lifestyle of selected student families in a six-state region. (The three-volume report presents both…

This second document in a three-volume summative evaluation report presents a portion of the internal evaluation conducted by the Mountain-Plains program, a residential, family-based education program developed to improve the economic potential and lifestyle of selected student families in a six-state region. (The three-volume report presents both…

This third document in a three-volume summative evaluation report submitted to the National Institute of Education presents a portion of the internal evaluation conducted by the Mountain-Plains program, a residential, family-based education program developed to improve the economic potential and lifestyle of selected student families in a…

This paper presents an interagency collaboration model designed to improve collaboration between residential programs and special education teachers involved with students residing in a community-based program. It uses the individualized educational program (IEP) process to provide a mechanism for transfer and generalization of goals between…

This article describes the continuum of treatment/education interventions developed to address the needs of Kentucky adjudicated and other at-risk and delinquent youth, ranging from school-based alternative education programs to long-term stays in residential programs. The interagency collaborative approach emphasizes transition planning to less…

This paper presents an educational program for seriously emotionally disturbed students at the Yellowstone Ranch, a residential treatment facility and school focusing on the enhancement of each student's self esteem. Located in Montana, which in 1965 created a special school district to serve the needs of special needs children, the school has as…