The Special Services Department offers a wide range of programs for students ages 3 through 21 who meet eligibility criteria for one or more of the following:

• Physically Impaired
• Auditorially Impaired
• Visually Impaired
• Deaf-Blind
• Other Health Impaired
• Orthopedically Impaired
• Intellectually Disabled
• Emotionally Disturbed
• Learning Disabled
• Speech Impaired
• Autism
• Multiple Handicapped
• Traumatic Brain Injury

Students who have serious visual or hearing impairments may receive services from birth.

Regional Day School for the Deaf-Paris ISD is a member of a cooperative program which provides comprehensive services for hearing impaired children.

Life/Community Based Instructions-The educational goal for all students is to acquire skills necessary to facilitate employment and to develop skills necessary to participate actively in present and future "natural" environments (home, community, vocational).  Life/CBI training for students with disabilities provides systematic, intensive training in integrated vocational, recreational and community settings.  "Learning in a Functional Environment"

Early Childhood Education-Children with disabilities from 3 to 5 years of age receive special education and related services from personnel working in the Early Childhood Program located at Givens Early Childhood Center.  The classes have been specifically designed for young children to provide instruction in the developmental areas of cognition, communication, motor, self-help, social/emotional and creative expression.

Inclusion-In alignment with the district's mission and strategic goals, PISD has implemented inclusion in varying degrees at each campus.  Inclusion means that General Education and Special Education work collaboratively to serve students with disabilities in--planning, instruction, classroom management, accommodations, documentation, grading, and trouble-shooting.

Content Mastery-A program designed to keep special education students in the regular classroom with their peers.  Students receive instructions and participate in group activities in the regular classrooms and attend the Content Mastery Lab as needed for assistance with independent academic assignments, reteaching, reinforcement, or reading of certain material.

Vocational Adjustment Class (VAC) provides special education students of high school age with career orientation and on the job training.  Students receive training in job skills in addition to regular academic work.  Those who are ready for specific job training and job placement receive off-campus training.

Community Based Vocational Training is offered to secondary students with disabilities.  Vocational training includes multiple training and work experience options based on the type of community work available for non-disabled citizens.  Student begin work as a group at the middle school and junior high levels.  As students move through high school, the number and variety of job sites broaden, requiring individual or small group training.  Upon graduation, students have developed a sizeable "bank" of employable skills and experiences.

Related services are available to help students with disabilities benefit from special education instruction.  These services are delivered in accordance with the student's I.E.P. which has been developed jointly by teachers, administrators, appraisal personnel and the child's parents.  Such services include:

• Counseling
• Transportation
• Physical Therapy
• Occupational Therapy
• Adapted Physical Education
• Assistive Technology
• Interpreters for the Hearing Impaired
• Orientation & Mobility

Paris ISD is committed to the principle that students with disabilities should receive appropriate special education and related services in the least restrictive instructional setting possible.  Students are placed in the learning environment most suited to their individual needs.