Special Education

Lakota’s Special Services Department is committed to meeting the unique needs of students with disabilities by offering a continuum of services as outlined in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEIA). Lakota offers a free and appropriate public education to children ages 3 through 21 that meet special education eligibility requirements in one of thirteen disability categories in accordance with applicable state and federal laws, rules, and regulations.

Child Find

Lakota is in an ongoing effort to identify, locate, and evaluate children with disabilities in the district who are in need of special education and/or related services in accordance with Rule 3301-51-03 of the Operating Standards for Ohio’s Schools Serving Children with Disabilities.

If you know of a child up to 21 years of age who you suspect may have a disability, please contact one of Lakota’s Directors of Special Education by calling the Special Services department at 513-644-1212.

Special Education Process

A child’s eligibility for special education services is based on whether or not a qualified team of professionals determines the presence of a disability, the need for specially designed instruction and/or related services, and an adverse affect on the child’s education as part of an Evaluation Team Report (i.e., ETR).

For preschoolers and school-age children, a disability means having one or more conditions defined by federal regulations and state standards. These disabilities include autism, intellectual disability, specific learning disability, deaf-blindness, deafness, emotional disturbance, hearing impairment, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairment, other health impairment, speech/language impairment, traumatic brain injury, visual impairment (including blindness), and developmental delay.

An Individualized Education Program (i.e., IEP) that outlines a child's special education services will be developed by a team of qualified professionals in the event that a child is identified with a disability.

Related services may include special transportation, speech-language pathology or audiology services, interpreting services, physical or occupational therapy services, counseling services, orientation and mobility services, transition to work services, nursing or medical services, etc.

Additional Resources

Lakota has one Special Services Executive Director, as well as Special Services Directors assigned to each grade band (i.e., K-2, 3-6, 7-12).

Lakota’s parent mentor also provides information and support to families of children with disabilities. The mentor is a district employee and also the parent of a child with a disability. The parent mentor works to support the relationship between the school and the family of a child with a disability. All parent mentor services are free of charge to families; the Ohio Department of Education provides the funds for Ohio Parent Mentor projects.

Note: The Ohio Department of Education has requested that all Ohio public school districts provide parents with a copy of the Notice of Proposed Class Action Settlement in Doe v. State of Ohio; click here to view the notice. Please direct questions to the ODE's Office of Chief Legal Counsel at (614) 752-5807.

Frequently Asked Questions

Lakota Special Services

What are the goals of the Special Services department regarding communication and resources?

The Special Services Department’s goal is to support the district's strategic plan and be in compliance with IDEA as outlined by requirements from the Department of Education and Workforce (formerly the Ohio Department of Education). Parents can stay up-to-date with information from our department by:

Visiting the Special Education webpage;
Reading the district’s monthly e-newsletter;
Visiting the Lakota Parent Mentor webpage;
Following the Lakota Parent Mentor Facebook page; and
Joining Lakota CARES.

Where are the special education policies located?

What percentage of students does Lakota have on Individual Education Programs (IEPs) and how do Lakota students’ compare to the state-wide average for students on IEPs?

The 2022-2023 Ohio Special Education Profile, which is based on the previous school year’s data, denotes Ohio’s students with disabilities (SWD) is 15.86%. During this time, just over 10% of students enrolled in Lakota are SWD (10.06%).

Lakota does not collect or report data specific to diagnoses. However, we can share Lakota’s Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) disability categories as reported on the 2022-2023 Ohio Special Education Profile (see chart below). This data is based on the previous year’s information.

Please note that data is not collected for state 504s.

*SWD stands for Students with Disabilities

**DEW stands for Department of Education and Workforce

IDEA Disability Categories	2023 - 2024 Lakota Reported SWD* (Data coming in December)	2021-2022 DEW** Reported SWD Lakota: 10.06%	2021-2022 DEW Reported SWD Ohio: 15.86%
Total Lakota Student Population for the Reported Year:	17,600	16,900	16,900
Autism	17.45%	14.31%	10.64%
Intellectual Disability	4.54%	4%	4.06%
Emotional Disturbance	4.1%	4.92%	5.09%
Deafness	.68%	.68%	.72%
Multiple Disabilities	4.9%	4.78%	4.28%
OHI Major	.22%	.43%	.22%
OHI Minor	20.30%	20.90%	19.98%
Orthopedic Impairment	.73%	.54%	.45%
Specific Learning Disability	32.35%	35.43%	37.25%
Speech & Language	13%	12.8%	12.17%
Traumatic Brain Injury	.92%	.92%	.54%
Visual Impairment	.27%	.27%	.34%

What is the district's plan to better identify twice exceptional children and serve their unique needs?

Identifying students who are twice exceptional involves both the evaluation process for a 504 or an IEP AND the identification process for gifted. All three (504, IEP, and gifted) have different procedures for identification. Once identified, the student’s educational team will consider all parts of the student’s identification for planning services and accommodations.

In reference to House Bill 486, what is the plan to support dyslexia screening and timing?

What is the process regarding seclusion or physical restraint?

Classroom Learning & Management

In reference to House Bill 486, what is the plan to support dyslexia screening and timing?
What is the process regarding seclusion or physical restraint?

In reference to House Bill 486, what is the plan to support dyslexia screening and timing?

What is the process regarding seclusion or physical restraint?

Staff Training Questions

What training does staff receive on twice-exceptional (2e) children?

Lakota provides regular professional development that is in compliance with the gifted competencies provided by the Department of Education and Workforce (formerly the Ohio Department of Education). Every Lakota teacher is receiving 60 hours of professional development over a 4 year period related to the gifted competencies. This ensures that they are able to be a service provider for students identified as gifted. This training includes identifying the unique needs of gifted learners such as asynchronous development and twice-exceptional learners.

What training do general education teachers have each year on how to include students who learn differently in their classroom?

Lakota’s professional development plan is focused on personalized learning. This requires educators to utilize a student’s assessment data to determine each student’s unique learning needs.

Teachers are then trained on how to provide classroom experiences that are aligned to content standards but also meet learners where is developmentally and academically appropriate. Additionally, it is the role of the intervention specialist to meet with each student’s team of teachers to ensure that they understand each child’s unique needs and accommodations.

Does Lakota require bus drivers and bus aides to participate in special training related to students with disabilities (SWD)?

What training do Lakota’s instructional aides receive related to working with students with disabilities?

Instructional aides are required to complete training during the professional development days at the start of each school year. This includes the completion of required learning modules and optional topics that they can choose from based on their experience and the individual needs of the students they work with. The modules change from year to year based on student and district needs.