§ 186-C:3-a — Duties

New Hampshire § 186-C:3-a

• Jurisdiction: New Hampshire
• Title XV: EDUCATION
• Ch. 186-C: SPECIAL EDUCATION

Text

I. The division shall help school districts meet their responsibilities under this chapter and under federal law regarding the education of children with disabilities.
I-a. The special education program of the department of education shall develop and analyze information on issues and problems of regional and statewide importance and on assisting school districts in dealing with these issues and problems. The department shall ensure that the regulation and monitoring of school district activities shall not exceed what is necessary for compliance with this chapter and with state and federal law regarding the education of children with disabilities.
II. The department of education shall collect, organize, and analyze data and information about programs, conditions, instruction, and trends in special education in the state. In addition, the department shall be responsible for monitoring and maintaining information about national and regional trends, instructions and issues affecting special education in New Hampshire. The department shall make this information available to the districts and use this information to:
(a) Assess the needs of school districts for assistance in carrying out their responsibilities for educating children with disabilities;
(b) Identify cost effective and appropriate alternative programs that meet the needs of children with disabilities;
(c) Focus resources on students requiring extensive services;
(d) Develop cost and service level benchmarks for special education in New Hampshire which may be used as reference points by districts to measure the effectiveness of their programs in meeting goals and objectives of the individualized education program; and
(e) Develop and promote evidence-based practices supporting the education of children with disabilities in the least restrictive environment, provided that:
(1) If children with disabilities are being placed in out-of-district programs solely due to a lack of qualified personnel, the department shall develop and implement strategies to help address the shortage and increase the capacity of local education agencies to serve children in the schools they would attend if not disabled.
(2) The department shall identify disproportionate representation in out-of-district programs and provide focused technical assistance to help the identified school districts serve children with disabilities in the least restrictive environment.
II-a. (a) In addition to the requirements of paragraph II, the department of education shall submit an annual report by September 1, to the commissioner of the department and the state board of education that:
(1) Shows the identification of children with disabilities analyzed according to the following criteria: age and grade level, and number and percentage of the total number of children with disabilities in each disability category.
(2) Includes expenditures for special education as reported to the department of education by school districts and state and federal revenues for special education received by school districts.
(3) Shows the annual progress and compliance on the state's performance plan required by 20 U.S.C. section 1416(b), 20 U.S.C. section 1412(a)(15), and 20 U.S.C. section 1416(a)(3).
(4) Shows the progress and compliance with the requirements in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) of 2015, 20 U.S.C. section 6311(b), and RSA 193-E:3, and RSA 193-H:2, with respect to children with disabilities.
(5) Shows the number and category of parental refusals or partial refusals of services or placements for students with disabilities proposed in individualized education programs (IEPs) and tracks the resolution of those parental refusals, including the timeline for resolution through dispute resolution methods provided by or overseen by the department.
(b) These findings shall be reported for the state and for each school district. The commissioner shall make this report available upon request to all legislators, school officials from school districts, school administrative units, cooperative schools, AREA schools, and the general public, and shall make it available in an easily accessible format on the department of education website. In preparing such reports, the department of education shall not disclose personally identifiable information.
III. The department of education shall provide technical assistance and information to the school districts so that the districts may effectively and efficiently identify, clarify and address their specific responsibilities under state and federal special education laws. This assistance shall include the provision of mediation services to resolve special education disputes and the provision of expertise regarding specific educationally disabling conditions. Whenever technical assistance of a specialized nature, beyond that available in the department, is required, the department shall assume a leadership role in identifying sources of such assistance in other state agencies, the federal government, volunteer services or the private sector.
IV. The department of education shall administer those federal and state funding programs for special education assigned to it by law. The department shall also make recommendations to the state board regarding management systems, standard definitions and procedures in order to provide uniform reporting of special education services and expenditures by school districts and school administrative units.
V. The department of education shall monitor the operations of local school districts, regional special education centers, chartered public schools, and private organizations or state programs for the benefit of the education of children with disabilities regarding compliance with state and federal laws regarding the education of students with disabilities. The department's monitoring, regulatory oversight, and program approval shall be structured and implemented in a prudent manner and shall not place an excessive administrative burden on local districts. The department and districts shall approach monitoring and regulation in a constructive, cooperative manner, while also ensuring accountability for failing to meet standards and ensuring that the special education needs of children with disabilities are met.
VI. [Repealed.]
VII. (a) Granite State high school shall submit a plan for department approval to be adopted by November 1, 2009, to meet the special education needs of persons incarcerated in the state prison system.
(b) Each county correctional facility shall designate one person who shall serve as the contact person in all matters related to special education. This person shall:
(1) Provide, on a weekly basis, a list of incarcerated inmates up to the age of 21 inclusive who are eligible to receive special education.
(2) Provide the school district with access to the incarcerated inmates with disabilities for the purpose of providing special education to ensure a free and appropriate public education; and
(3) Provide time and space within the correctional facility to allow the school district to provide instruction and any special education and related services pursuant to the person's individualized education program.
(c) County correctional facilities shall be monitored according to the standards set forth in any interagency agreements between the department of education and each county correctional facility.
(d) Granite State high school shall comply with the requirements in RSA 194:60 and shall be monitored in 2010 and subject to onsite monitoring at least annually through 2013.

Legislative History

1985, 269:3. 1987, 345:7. 1990, 140:2, X, XII. 1994, 379:14, 24, V. 1997, 232:1. 1998, 68:1. 2008, 302:36. 2010, 184:1. 2011, 231:4, eff. June 29, 2011. 2023, 7:1, eff. June 25, 2023. 2024, 351:2, eff. Oct. 1, 2024.