Special Education at the American Academy of Innovation (AAI) is dedicated to the personal and academic excellence of all students, including those with learning difficulties and English Language Learners, and provides outstanding education options for students with disabilities. AAI’s curricula and teaching strategies, including use of tiered instruction, are effective for most students. Like all public schools in Utah, AAI follows the requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act.
If a child has been receiving special education under an Individualized Education Program (IEP)or services under a 504 Plan, please inform the staff when you make application for enrollment. AAI does not want to have any student miss needed services or accommodations that will support success.
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
At the American Academy of Innovation, a strong and dedicated special education staff of teachers, related service providers, consultants, and paraprofessionals knows how to support children with special needs. These supports include:
- Teaching and providing proper referral procedures for classroom teachers and parents
- Acting as a resource for classroom teachers for strategies to support students with different
learning needs - Performing student assessments and evaluations
- Conducting group and or individual instruction
- Managing documentation of eligibility, IEPs, and progress reports
- Providing opportunities for meetings with parents, classroom teachers, and other professionals,
as appropriate
If a child is not making adequate progress in the grade-level curriculum, these issues should be
discussed by the parent and teacher. AAI uses an intervention system to address these issues
before they become severe enough to require special education. Continuing problems with
educational performance may cause a parent or teacher to suspect a child has a disability that
might make him/her eligible for services under the IDEA. The parent or teacher may make a
referral for an evaluation to test specific areas of concern. The information collected will be
considered by an eligibility team, including the parent, in deciding whether the child does have a
disability that adversely affects his/her educational performance and requires specialized
instruction or specialized instruction and related services. An evaluation will not be conducted
without the parent’s written informed consent.
If a child is found eligible, an IEP will be developed by a team including the parent. No child will
receive special education services without the written consent of the parent(s).
Areas of disability defined under the IDEA:
- Autism
- Deaf/Blindness
- Developmental Delay
- Emotional Disturbance
- Hearing Impairment/Deafness
- Intellectual Disability
- Multiple Disabilities
- Orthopedic Impairment
- Other Health Impairment
- Specific Learning Disability
- Speech-Language Impairment
- Traumatic Brain Injury
- Visual Impairment (including Blindness)
The American Academy of Innovation uses Method C: Combination of Response to Intervention and Significant Discrepancy to identify students who have Specific Learning Disabilities as defined in the Utah State Board of Education Special Education Rules. All students are engaged in a tiered model of instruction with supplemental interventions provided in areas where the student is not achieving the state grade-level standards. Parents are informed of strategies used and will receive reports of periodic assessments of progress, along with quarterly reports on overall performance.
Section 504
The eligibility requirements for a 504 Plan differ from those for IDEA. If you or your child’s teachers suspect that your child may have a disability that substantially limits one or more life function, a request for determination of eligibility for a 504 Plan may be made to the school’s 504 coordinator.
If you would like more information about the IDEA and the Utah State Board of Education Special Education Rules, ask a special education teacher at the American Academy of Innovation or go to the Utah Parent Center (funded by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs).
Carson Smith Special Needs Scholarship
The Carson Smith Special Needs Scholarship provides tuition assistance for eligible special needs students enrolled in eligible private schools. To be eligible for the scholarship, the student must meet a set of requirements as addressed in the Utah State Board of Education’s Special Education Carson Smith Scholarship (CSS).