KCDHH and KAD is co-hosting the AD Hoc Committee on Deaf and Hard of Hearing Child's Bill of Rights.

The Kansas Association of the Deaf (KAD) and the Kansas Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing implemented the Ad Hoc Committee on Kansas Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children's Educational Bill of Rights. The committee has met for a total of eight (8) meetings beginning December 2006 through June 2007. This committee was charged to develop a Bill of Rights for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children.
The goal of implementing such Bill of Rights is to offer Deaf and Hard of Hearing children's rights to communication access in the educational settings. This Bill will set the framework for IEP meetings, help guide the parents through the maze of special education system, and most importantly it focuses on the unique communication need of every Deaf and Hard of Hearing child in the State of Kansas. The ad hoc committee originally began their task by simply drafting a Bill of Rights and after several feedback/comments the committee came up with 15 rights to include in the draft Bill of Rights.

Click here to read the 15 Rights are listed as follows down below:

Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children’s Educational Bill of Rights
Ad Hoc Committee Scope

What does a Bill of Rights do?

A Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Educational Bill of Rights:

•Informs parents and educators on the unique nature of deafness as it relates to the basic human need for language and communication skills.

•Informs parents and educators about the importance of early and focused intervention in meeting the language and communication needs of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing children.

•Informs parents and educators on all the educational options available for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing children.

•Informs parents and educators on the educational needs for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing children and how IDEA law applies to the needs of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing children.

Why is a Bill of Rights needed?

The national research says:

•Thirty percent (30%) of all children and youth who are deaf and hard-of-hearing leave school functionally illiterate as compared to 1% among hearing children and youth. (Marschark, 1997)
•Less than one-half of 18 year old students who are deaf/hard-of-hearing leaving high school reach a 5th grade level of reading and writing. (Traxler 2000)
•Children and youth who are deaf/hard-of-hearing graduate from high school with average reading skills ranging from a 2.8 to 4.5 grade level. (Allen 1986; Traxler 2000)
•Only 8% of students who are deaf/hard-of-hearing graduate from college. (COED, 1988).
•Approximately 1/3 of all adults who are deaf rely on some form of governmental assistance with the average income of adults who are deaf being 40-60% of their hearing counterparts. (NDEP, 2000)

Does Kansas Need a Bill of Rights?

Threats vs. Opportunities
Does a Bill of Rights exist elsewhere?
Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education Bill of Rights have been enacted in:
•Colorado enacted 3/18/96
•New Mexico enacted 3/9/04
•Texas enacted 5/30/95
•Louisiana, enacted 6/8/98
•South Dakota, effective 7/1/93
•California, effective 1/30/94
•Rhode Island, enacted 7/3/95
•Unconfirmed reports of passage in Connecticut, Alabama, North Carolina, Florida, Minnesota and Michigan.

Incorporated into State Board of Education policy regulation in Montana, Hawaii, Alaska, and Kentucky.

Ongoing legislative initiatives in Georgia (in legislature Feb. 2007) Pennsylvania (in legislature Jun 2006), Utah (proposed for 2008), Illinois (resolution passed), Idaho (resolution passed), Massachusetts (in legislative committee), Arkansas, Iowa, Maine, North Dakota, Virginia and Washington.

What Rights are needed?

The essentials for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children include:

•Early intervention
•Appropriate Education Priorities
•Informed Parents
•Parent Participation
•Communication Choice
•Quality Education Programs
•Qualified Education Personnel
•Opportunities for Language Mode Peers
•Proven Education Practices
•Equal Access to school activities
•Transitional and vocational opportunities
•Interaction with role models
•Appropriate regular assessments
•Regular Education Considerations
•Proper LRE determination

Right #1 – Early Intervention

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing, when first identified as deaf or hard-of-hearing, shall have hearing and language assessments and begin intervention services as soon as possible to provide for acquisition of a solid communication base at the earliest possible age.

Right #2 – Appropriate Priorities

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing shall have an education where their language development and communication needs are priorities.

Right #3 – Informed Parents

Children who are deaf or hard-of hearing shall have their parents or guardians informed of the full continuum of alternative placement options and modes of communication available to them, whether provided by the local service agency, school district, or not.

Right #4 – Parent Participation

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing shall have their parents’ or guardians’ full and informed participation in their educational planning and placement. The parents or guardians are to be involved in the scope, content, and purpose of programs with school professionals and, when requested, deaf or hard-of-hearing adults.

Right #5 – Communication Choice

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing shall have an education in the child’s and family’s preferred mode(s) of communication that fully meets the communication and related needs of the child. Like all children, they shall have an education in which their unique communication mode or modes are respected, utilized, and developed to an age-appropriate and intelligible level of proficiency.

Right #6 – Quality Programs

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing and are language delayed shall have a quality, language rich, communication driven education offering them the opportunity to develop and achieve age-appropriate language and intelligible communication skills as soon as possible in their preferred mode or modes of communication.

Right #7 – Qualified Personnel

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing shall have qualified teachers of the deaf and hard-of-hearing, speech-language-pathologists, assessors, and other related special education personnel who understand the unique nature of deafness, can communicate with them directly, and are specifically trained, experienced, and proficient in delivering education and developing age-appropriate language and intelligible communication skills in their preferred mode or modes of communication.

Right #8 – Opportunities with Peers

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing, in developing age-appropriate language and intelligible communication skills, shall have their language and communication needs considered with opportunities identified and available for an education with a sufficient number of same language mode peers who are the same, or approximately the same, ages, abilities, and academic levels.

Right #9 – Proven Practices

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing shall have school personnel who are committed to developing language and communication skills in the child’s preferred mode of communication following widely accepted program guidelines and practices for that mode of communication.

Right #10 – Equal Access

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing, like all children, shall have programs that offer direct access, with appropriate accommodations where needed, to all components of the educational process, including, but not limited to, recess, lunch, and extracurricular social and athletic activities.

Right #11 – Support Opportunities

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing shall have programs in which their unique transitional and vocational needs are provided, including appropriate research, curricula, programs, staff, and outreach.

Right #12 – Role Model Interaction

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing shall have the benefits from interaction with deaf or hard-of-hearing adult role models with whom they can communicate directly in their mode of communication.

Right #13 – Assessments

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing shall have appropriate regular assessments of hearing, language, and communication skills administered by trained qualified personnel proficient in the communication mode, style, or language of the individual child to determine level of educational and related services needed throughout the educational experience.

Right #14 – Regular Ed Placement

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing, when placed in any classroom setting, shall have adequately prepared regular education personnel, special education and related services (i.e. teacher of the deaf, speech-language-pathologist, audiologist), and classroom accommodations to successfully access the curriculum and social activities in the educational setting. Age/grade-appropriate language, academic, and communication skills shall be considered in discussions involving placement in a regular education classroom setting. Classroom accommodations may include, but are not limited to; qualified interpreters for students who use manual communication, assistive technology and classroom acoustics for auditory/oral students, seating location and limited class size for easier communication, or any combination that meets the needs of each individual student.

Right #15 – LRE Determination

Each deaf or hard-of-hearing child shall have a determination of an appropriate educational placement in the least restrictive environment that takes into consideration the individual child’s full range of language, communication, and related needs. Any setting, including a regular education classroom, that does not provide for the child’s unique language development, communication and related needs cannot be considered the least restrictive environment for that individual child.

A lot of work, time and energy went into developing the final (7th), for a copy of this Draft Bill of Rights go to this link at:

http://www.srskansas.org/kcdhh/text/Bill-of-Rights_final-6-5-07.pdf

This committee is ready to move forth with this final draft and assuring the success of this Bill they are seeking feedback and support from various stakeholders. The first and most important stakeholder is the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE).

You can submit your feedback on the Draft Bill of Rights by contacting either Rebecca Rosenthal at Rebecca.Rosenthal@srs.ks.gov or Mr. Joe DeFazio, Chair at jdefazio@sbcglobal.net.