Peer relationships are just as important for students with autism, intellectual disability, and other developmental disabilities. Through their interactions with peers across the school day, students develop new skills, encounter new perspectives, access needed supports, find camaraderie, develop social capital, learn prevailing norms, and elevate…

While some Catholic schools include students with disabilities, few serve students with significant support needs. This paper offers two distinct models for including students with developmental disabilities in Catholic schools at the primary and secondary level. Describing programs at Children of Peace School and Notre Dame College Prep School,…

The 1985 update addresses New Jersey's plans for services to people with developmental disabilities. In a question and answer format, the manual focuses on the following topics: definitions and impact (incidence); the state planning council on developmental disabilities (council members and staff); the administering agency for the developmental…

The document presents Minnesota's state plan for developmentally disabled residents. A question and answer format is used along with a narrative and references to state and federal law, regulations, and court rulings on the following topics (sample subtopics in parentheses): definition and impact of developmental disabilities (effects on…

The author presents several suggestions for the organization of self-help groups for parents of developmentally disabled children. Guidelines stress that parents are the most important advocates their children will ever have and that parents must often meet to share information among themselves. (SBH)

Reported is the development of the Connecticut state plan to assess the needs of the developmentally disabled and establish service priorities. An overview of the planning system includes information on planning processes and the model components including needs assessment, priority setting, program development and selection, program approval, and…

The fourth in a series on deinstitutionalization of individuals with developmental disabilities in Ohio, the paper concentrates on the contributions of formal and informal supports. Following a review of basic planning principles, formal support services necessary for planning community-based services for persons with developmental disabilities…

This publication describes Utah's Handicapped Child Data Project, an interagency effort to share information among agencies dealing with developmentally disabled persons and establish a central registry. Five action steps in such a venture are noted, including identifying potential sources of information on state and individual levels, decreasing…

This article identifies six core elements that have empirical support and should be included in instructional programs for students with autistic spectrum disorders. They are: (1) individualized supports and services; (2) systematic instruction; (3) comprehensible/structured learning environments; (4) specialized curriculum content; (5) functional…

Examined are the roles and progress over the past 3 years of state councils on developmental disabilities, as established by the Developmental Disabilities Act of 1970. (Author/DB)

The second in a series of reports by a task force subcommittee on deinstitutionalization of developmentally disabled persons in Ohio, the monograph focuses on residential services. Basic planning principles, reflecting philosophical and legal concepts such as least restrictive alternative, normalization, and respect for human dignity, are…

Described is the program of the Georgetown Adolescent Intervention Team (Washington, D.C.), which provides interdisciplinary evaluations and diagnoses, and identifies appropriate alternative placements for developmentally disabled juvenile offenders (10-16 years old and older). The program is discussed in terms of a review of procedures for…

The plan presents information relating to persons with developmental disabilities and other substantial handicaps in Alaska. A joint effort by state planning and service providing agencies, the plan was developed with input from consumers as well as providers. An introduction to the document is followed by an overview of the state and the…

This paper presents a consultative model for providing behavioral supports within the context of a public school setting to students with developmental disabilities who display challenging behaviors. The suggested model is contrasted with the traditional consultation model in which a consultant comes from outside the immediate problem situation,…

This teaching manual for treatment of children with developmental disabilities is divided into seven sections that address: (1) basic concepts; (2) transition into treatment; (3) early learning concepts; (4) expressive language; (5) strategies for visual learners; (6) programmatic considerations; and (7) organizational and legal issues. Among…