Wyoming Advisory Panel for Students with Disabilities

What is WAPSD?

Mission Statement

The mission of the Wyoming Advisory Panel for Students with Disabilities, as a diverse group, is to raise a common voice to advise the Wyoming State Superintendent of Public Instruction on the unmet needs of students with disabilities by advocating for and commenting on the improvement of educational opportunities.

Vision Statement

The vision of the Wyoming Advisory Panel for Students with Disabilities is to provide guidance on education policies for all students with disabilities that create opportunities for them to become compassionate, productive, and contributing citizens of their communities.

Advisory Panel Function

• To Give Advice
• To Inform
• To Counsel
• To Recommend
• To Suggest
• To Guide

Teamwork

The members of the Wyoming Advisory Panel for Students with Disabilities work together as a team to help keep parents, educators, and administrators informed on the six principles of the law:

1. Parent and student participation in decision making
2. Procedural due process
3. Appropriate evaluation
4. Free appropriate public education (FAPE)
5. Individual education program (IEP)
6. Least restrictive environment (LRE)

Panel Functions

A critical component that contributes to the success of the panel is ongoing implementation of the panel functions as outlined in the Individuals with Disabilities Act of 2004, including:

• Advise the State Education Agency (SEA) of un-met needs within the State in the education of children with disabilities.
• Comment publicly on any rules or regulations proposed by the State regarding the education of children with disabilities.
• Advise the SEA in developing evaluations and reporting on data to the Secretary under Section 618 of the Act.
• Advise the SEA in developing corrective action plans to address findings identified in federal monitoring reports under Part B of the Act.
• Advise the SEA in developing and implementing policies relating to the coordination of services for children with disabilities.
• Advise on services to eligible students with disabilities in adult prisons. The advisory panel shall also advise on the education of eligible students with disabilities who have been convicted and incarcerated in adult prisons.
• Review any final due process hearing findings and decisions.

Last updated March 2011 © Wyoming Advisory Panel for Students with Disabilities