Vision

Hamilton County Department of Education, Exceptional Education Department, commits to partnering with families and community agencies to ensure the spirit and implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act by creating, fostering, and supporting inclusive environments, services and programs that offer opportunities for educational, social, behavioral and emotional success for students with disabilities, including those students identified as gifted.

Mission

Our mission is to empower stakeholders to demonstrate respect for and to foster relationships with students of all abilities to enable them to live in an inclusive society by facilitating:

•Collaboration among all stakeholders to ensure shared responsibility for all students in the planning of programs and environments to support success.

•Functional Assessment of students for programming and planning purposes that is culturally responsive and designed to include the ongoing monitoring of student success.

•Professional Development calculated to recruit and retain exemplary educators and to provide outreach regarding the implications of current legislation and innovations associated with serving students with disabilities.

•The provision of a Continuum of Service that is responsive to student needs in their assigned school through the use of best practices.

•The recognition that exceptionalities do not erase expectations; thus providing for the supports, services, and accommodations necessary for students to access the curriculum.

•Technology that levels the playing field for students and provides for the appropriate training and supports necessary to use it in order to access curriculum and extra curricular activities with typical peers.

•The efficient use of available resources and a continuous search for creative and innovative opportunities to increase these resources.

Please contact the ExEd webmaster at exed_web@hcde.org with questions, suggestions, or updates.