Towns County Schools to Host Annual Child Find Meeting

Towns County Schools will hold its annual Child Find meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 18, at 10 a.m. in the Middle School/High School Media Center.

The meeting is open to anyone interested in learning more about Child Find or who has a student with a disability enrolled in a homeschool or private school setting.

Child Find is the process school districts use to identify, locate, and evaluate all children from birth through age 21 who are suspected of having disabilities that may require special education and related services. A referral can be made by anyone who has a concern about a child’s development.

The process covers a wide range of children, including:

• Children from birth through age 3 who may or may not be referred to or served by the state’s early intervention program, Babies Can’t Wait

• Preschool children ages 3 through 5 who may not be enrolled in a Georgia-funded pre-kindergarten or kindergarten program, including those parentally placed in private preschools or daycare centers outside the district

• Students enrolled in public schools within the district, including public charter schools

• Children parentally placed in private schools or homeschools

• Students attending charter schools within the district or in the area if designated as an individual district

• Highly mobile children, including migrant, homeless, and wards of the state

• Children served in community programs such as rehabilitation or daycare centers

• Children incarcerated in facilities operated by the local sheriff’s office or other municipalities

• Any other children suspected of having disabilities

Eligible special education categories include Autism Spectrum Disorder, Deaf-Blind, Deaf/Hard of Hearing, Emotional Behavioral Disorder, Mild/Moderate/Severe/Profound Intellectual Disability, Orthopedic Impairment, Other Health Impairment, Significant Developmental Delay, Specific Learning Disability, Speech Language Impairment, Traumatic Brain Injury, and Visual Impairment (including Blindness).

For more information, contact Dr. Victoria Stroud, Director of Special Education for Towns County Schools, at 1400 US Highway 76, Hiawassee, GA 30546; email vstroud@townscountyschools.org; phone 706-896-4131; or fax 706-896-8929.