News Archives

If you were unable to attend the 2011 CAPED Convention or were otherwise occupied and are interested in the interim data presented at the Town Hall meeting, please follow this link to see the PowerPoint presentation that was delivered at the meeting.

This document is an attempt to lay out the basics of what DSPS does, the regulations that support your services, the criteria for determining eligibility, academic accommodations and fiscal reporting.

Learning Disabilities Assessment: Issues and Implications:
A White Paper from the Chancellor's Office LD Field Advisory Committee.

A complete discussion on the budget cuts and the impact they have had on LD assesments.  Click above to read the white paper.

It's Back... "Veterans and the Community College:  A Training Guide" has gone live!  Click on the training tab above to visit the module. 

You may have noticed that the Veterans Module has gone missing.  It is currently undergoing a short period of R and R and will return as a completed work on July 6, 2011.  We will see you soon!

The Galvin Group is pleased to announce we have been awarded a contract by the Yosemite Community College District on behalf of the Chancellor's Office DSPS Program Accountability and Development Services (PADS) to evaluate the "Other Disabilities" DSPS Reporting Category.

The core issue at the heart of this contract is:

Why particular students are initially placed in the "Other Disability" reporting category. What factors or conditions motivate a DSPS professional to assign "Other Disability" as the MIS reporting category? What services, adjustments, or accommodations are provided and at what cost?

Therefore, over the next 14 months we shall be:

• Partnering with a minimum of 8 colleges to gather comprehensive data and cost analysis of serving students designated in the "Other Disabilities" MIS data reporting category
• Partnering with a minimum of 20 colleges for comprehensive review of student files for those designated in the "Other Disabilities" MIS data reporting category
• Survey  112 colleges for information on students served in the "Other Disabilities" category
• Interviewing approximately  30 college DSPS supervisors to gain insight into usage of the  "Other Disabilities" category, and
• Hosting a Town Hall meeting at CAPED 2011

The focus of the study will be to examine the following questions:

1. What different impairments, by number and percent, are being reported in the "Other Disabilities?"
2. How are students' disabilities reported under the "Other Disabilities" being documented and verified by the DSPS program?
3. How many students, by number and percent, are originally reported under the "Other Disabilities" and eventually moved to another disability reporting category?
4. At what point in the student's educational plan and in the reporting cycle are students who are being temporarily reported in this category moved to a different reporting category?
5. How many colleges, within their existing MIS systems, are internally coding students reported to the state under "Other Disabilities" as having a more specific disability type?
6. What are the average costs of each of the various disabilities reported under "Other Disabilities"?
   
   

Watch this space for more details as the plan of activities unfolds.

If you have questions about this contract or would like more information on how to become involved in these activities please click here to email us.

Chapter One of the Veterans in Higher Education training module is now open.  Click on the training tab above or to get started on the first chapter "DSPS and the Returning Veteran"  click here.

 Dr. Brooke Choo and Dr. Kim d'Arcy presented a wonderful session of psychological issues impacting the assessment of Learning Disabilities.  If you missed it you have a second chance here.  Use a headset for the best sound.

You may have noticed that we are revamping our website. Over the next several weeks we will be phasing in our new look.  As you can see, the home pages look quite different, however as you move to the resource, directory and training pages they will be in the old style.  Soon these pages will have the new look of the home page.  We hope you enjoy the new style and the new navigation tools that will be forth coming.  Thank you for your patience during this transition and please let us know what you think!

This document has been thoughtfully prepared as a resource for supervisors of Disabled Students Program and Services (DSPS), Assistive Technology

Specialists, Alternate Media Specialists,Distance Education Coordinators, instructional designers, faculty, ADA/504 Coordinators, trainers and administrators. It is the intention of the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office that these guidelines will provide an extensive revision to the 1999 Distance Education: Access Guidelines for Students with Disabilities and an expansion of the guidance provided in the interim document, Distance Education Guidelines, 2008 Omnibus Version.

The Technical Assistance visit schedule has been posted for the 2011 school year.  Look for a new "Photo Gallery" feature that includes photos and other information about the colleges visited this year.