Huber Street School - Jaimie Viggiano
Clarendon School - Dawn Doering
Secaucus Middle School - Samantha Bozcon
Secaucus High School - Cate Suzano
CST Referral and Evaluation Process
A referral is the first step in the special education process. It is a formal written request that a student be evaluated by the Child Study Team to determine whether a student is eligible for special education and related services or by the speech/language specialist to determine whether a student is eligible for speech services. Once a referral is received, the parents will be invited to an Identification Meeting that will be scheduled within 20 days of receipt of the referral. Based on a review of available information about the student’s educational progress, a decision will be made at this meeting whether a CST or speech evaluation is warranted. If an evaluation is warranted, the nature and scope of the CST or speech evaluation will be discussed. If it appears that the problem can be alleviated with interventions in the general education program and the student has not participated in the I&RS process, there may be a decision not to conduct an evaluation, but to refer the student to the I&RS Committee for development of interventions. If the student is already receiving interventions and an evaluation is not warranted, the I&RS committee can make modifications to the existing plan. If there is an agreement to perform an evaluation, a written plan for the evaluation is developed at the meeting, describing the nature and scope of the evaluation. Written consent for an evaluation is required by the parent/guardian. This consent for evaluation can be provided at the conclusion of the meeting or the parent may wish to take additional time before providing written consent. Evaluations can only begin after the parent has provided written consent. Upon completion of the evaluations, the professional staff will provide the parent with a written report of the details of the testing results. The evaluations will help determine if the student has an educational disability and whether special education services are required. The discussion of the evaluations and the determination regarding special education eligibility will take place at the eligibility meeting. An Individualized Education Plan (IEP) is developed if the student if found eligibility for special education services. The purpose of this meeting is to determine the student’s current educational status and develop a program designed to meet the student’s unique needs.