Parent and Family Resources

The CCPS Family Support Services center helps families, educators, and community agencies obtain information, support, and resources to address the needs of children in all educational settings.   Family support staff assists clients in finding the answers to their questions, resolving concerns, and making informed decisions regarding children's educational needs.  Family support responds to inquiries about Carroll County Public Schools programs, services, policies, and procedures for Carroll County's special education population.   

 **NEW** You can make an inquiry with the Family Support Coordinator by filling out this form:  https://forms.office.com/r/CbfazzAuuJ 

You can also set up a time to talk with Tammy go to:  Book time with Chisholm, Tammy: 1 hour meeting

For login support for Home Access Center please see: CCPS Family Support Web Form

The Carroll County Special Education Citizen's Advisory Committee (SECAC) is a committee established by Carroll County Public Schools to seek meaningful input from parents, community partners, service providers, educators, and administrators on local issues about the achievement of students with disabilities.  This collaboration enables the Director of Special Education to consider a variety of stakeholders' feedback which influcences the delivery of special education services in Carroll County Public Schools.   If you have concerns and desire to bring about positive change please consider becoming an active member in this constructive process. 

For more information about SECAC or to inquire about how to become a member, please send an email to SECAC@carrollk12.org

There is a parent representative for each school within Carroll County Public Schools. Feel free to reach out to the administrator at your child's school or send an email to SECAC@carrollk12.org if you would like to connect with your parent representative. 

SECAC Council for Exceptional Children Conference and Expo Application

The SECAC 2024-2025 budget includes registration and related expenses for SECAC members to attend a national conference and expo that is being held in Baltimore, Maryland in March of 2025. The Council for Exceptional Children Conference and Expo is being held March 12, 2025- March 15, 2025 at the Baltimore Convention Center.

SECAC is funding attendance for members as this conference is aligned with SECAC’s priorities:

• Increase and designate professional development opportunities for ALL staff throughout the school year that is dedicated to implementation of curriculum and specially designed instruction, inclusive practices, and social emotional-behavioral supports.
• Expect and prioritize a culture of inclusion for all students, including those with special education needs, by fostering a sense of belonging and consideration of a wide spectrum of learning needs when creating and implementing policies, procedures, and daily operational norms.

If you would like to be considered for attendance, please complete this application. https://forms.office.com/r/XrqKuUtWtZ

Submissions are due by the end of the day, TUESDAY January 28, 2025. 

The procedural safeguards notice includes a full explanation of your rights in an easily understandable manner and in your native language. This procedural safeguards notice applies to children and families receiving services through an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) and also to children/students receiving services through an Individualized Education Program (IEP).  The protections included in this document are established by the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA 2004) and the Code of Maryland Regulations (COMAR).

Click the link below for a copy of the Parent Rights: Maryland Procedural Safeguards Notice 

Parental Rights - Maryland Procedural Safeguards Notice

If you require the Parental Rights document in another language other than English, please click on the link below.

Parental Rights - Maryland Procedural Safeguards Notice - other languages

The mastery of skills required for reading, writing, and mathematics is normally distributed across the population.  Approximately 80% of students will effectively learn to read, write, and compute, when provided daily instruction in the classroom. Students who do not respond to general education instruction should be provided with specific interventions to remediate academic skill deficits and progress should be monitored to determine whether appropriate growth is made with additional supports. Depending upon students’ response to interventions, specialized instruction through an IEP may not be necessary. If a student does not demonstrate an adequate rate of growth in response to intervention, this may indicate the need for an IEP Team to conduct a comprehensive evaluation to determine if an educational disability exists, and whether or not specialized instruction or accommodations are required for the student to receive FAPE.

Students with Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, and Dyscalculia may fall within this group of struggling learners. However, Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, and Dysgraphia are not their own disability categories, but rather examples of a Specific Learning Disability (SLD) under IDEA.  Thus, having a diagnosis of Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, or Dysgraphia does not automatically qualify a student for services. The severity of the academic difficulty and their response to interventions, will determine which tier of support will be most appropriate, rather than the specific diagnosis. If a student with Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, or Dysgraphia is demonstrating significant academic deficits and is not responding adequately to intervention, then the IEP team should conduct a comprehensive evaluation to determine that the student meets criteria for one of the disability categories under the IDEA, and determine whether the student requires specialized instruction in order to meet their unique needs.

If you have additional questions regarding dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia or the information on this webpage, please contact administration or the special education department at your local school.

**Please be aware this document may be updated frequently. 

The Maryland State Department of Education recently released a new publication entitled the Parent Information Series.   These resources provide essential information for families of students with disabilities from ages 3 through 21 on important topics that increase collaboration between home and school in planning for their child's education.    Use the link below to access MSDE's Parent Information Series.

Parent Information Series (marylandpublicschools.org)

The CCPS is one of the Maryland local educational agencies that participates in offering independent facilitated IEP meetings.   The CCPS partners with the Carroll County Mediation Center to offer these Facilitated IEP Services.

Facilitators work with the parent(s) and the school to foster constructive communication and collaboration to develop an effective educational program.  The facilitator talks to the parents and the IEP case manager in advance to support the development of an agenda and helps make sure everyone has a chance to speak and be heard at an IEP meeting.  The facilitator keeps the discussion focused and assists the team to resolve disagreements.  An independent facilitator may be requested by either the parent or the school; however, both parties must agree to participate in this voluntary process.  There is no cost, to the parent or the school, to have an independent facilitator assist in the IEP process.

For more information related to facilitated IEPs or to request a facilitated IEP meeting, you can contact the Carroll County Mediation Center at 410-848-1764.

The links below provides access to the MSDE Publications and Information including the Maryland Technical Assistance Bulletins or TABs.    The TABs provide guidance and a framework for local education agencies (LEAs) in Maryland to implement policies and procedures regarding eligible students ages 3-21 with disabilities.

Early Intervention and Special Education Services Publications and Information (marylandpublicschools.org)

Technical Assistance Bulletins (marylandpublicschools.org)

The Bullying Reporting System or Bullying, Harassment, or Intimidation Reporting Form should be used to report alleged incidents of bullying, harassment, or intimidation that occurred during the current school year on school property, at a school-sponsored activity or event off school property, on a school bus, on the way to and/or from school, or through electronic communication on or off school property.

Incident Reporting - Carroll County Public School District (carrollk12.org)

A parent or guardian may audio record an IEP team meeting provided the school is given written notice of their intent to record at least two business days prior to the meeting.    Please refer to the guidelines below for a full description of the procedures adopted by the CCPS related to the recording of IEP meetings.

Notice of Use of Recording Devices at IEP Team Meetings