The purpose of Education Services Center - Region 19 is to aid teachers and administrators in the El Paso area in their role as educators of our children. ESC-Region 19 provides professional development in areas such as technology, bilingual education, special education, gifted and talented education, curriculum development, teaching skills, administrative leadership, and programs for at-risk students.

The Region 2 Education Service Center promotes educational excellence for all students throughout its region and the state by providing both instructional and non-instructional assistance. Its primary focus is student achievement, which it addresses by offering relevant professional development for teachers, administrators, school board members, parents, and other clientele.

Region 3 ESC is responsible for providing leadership to the Texas statewide group of Low Incidence and Deafblind network members. It works to build capacity to meet the identified areas of need of students who have a severe cognitive disability or are medically fragile or deafblind. The website is designed to provide information for the network members as well as serve as a first point of contact for school staff and families of individuals with low incidence disabilities.

Region 4 Education Service Center provides services to 53 school districts, with a special focus on resources for students with vision impairments, such as Braille and tactile graphics. The website includes an online store with a large selection of printed materials related to disability and special education. Region 4 also provides Braille textbooks to all 50 states.

The mission of Region 5 ESC is to assist school districts in improving student performance while promoting greater efficiency and effectiveness. It has many divisions, including: administrative leadership, educational technology and media, special education, instructional services, information management, and business services. Region 5 also has an Adult Education Center located in Jasper and operates county juvenile justice alternative education programs in Hardin and Jefferson counties.

Region 6 ESC is located in southeast Texas. It has a statewide leadership role regarding issues related to autism and offers an online training program called Autism Core Training Online, which is free and available to everyone. Their website is quite comprehensive and contains a great deal of information and resources about a range of topics.

Region 7 ESC serves 106 school districts, the most of any Texas ESC. Its Special Education program provides administrative and program technical assistance and staff development to local education agencies to assist them in planning, implementing, and evaluating their special education programs.

It is the mission of Region 8 Education Service Center to create a partnership among all stakeholders by providing quality services to cultivate leaders who will prepare students to cope with the challenges of the future.

Region 9 ESC is responsible for taking a leadership role in the statewide Parent Coordination Network. This network is committed to ensuring that parents of students with disabilities receive accurate and timely information to assist them in making informed choices about their child's education. Region 9 ESC also coordinates the statewide Texas Survey of Parents of Students Receiving Special Education Services. Also, Region 9 ESC collaborates with the Texas Education Agency and the Family to Family Network on Texas Project FIRST.

Author: S. Carpenter, L. Fischer-Osborne, & D. Wilkes

Resource available at http://www.txddc.state.tx.us/resources/publications/EmployabilitySkills.pdf

This is a curriculum to promote employment for individuals with disabilities. It is designed to be used by community college personnel, or others from human service agencies or community organizations concerned with transition of students with disabilities from school to employment. The course is targeted for all students with disabilities. The authors of the curriculum recommend supplementing it with the JobSmart videos, published by the James Stanfield company (www.stanfield.com or 800-421-6534).

Published By: Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities

Publication Date: 2004

The Families and Advocates Partnership for Education project, a project of the Pacer Center, is a partnership that aims to improve the educational outcomes for children with disabilities. It links families, advocates, and self-advocates to information about the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The website includes information about training and workshops, as well as national, state, and local disabilities organizations. The site includes Spanish and Hmong translations of selected materials.

The mission of Family to Family Network is to help families of children with disabilities by providing information, training, referral, and support. The Family to Family Network provides: information and referral, educational events, a leadership and advocacy training program (Disability Leadership Network of Houston), Texas Project First (with the Texas Education Agency), a quarterly newsletter, a lending library, and a resource center.

Resource available at http://www.familyvillage.wisc.edu

This website integrates information, resources, and communication opportunities on the Internet for persons with cognitive and other disabilities, their families, and service providers. The site includes a wide array of links to information and resources on topics including advocacy, disability history, disability culture, legal issues, Asian American disability resources, African American disability resources, and Latino disability resources.

Published By: Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Author: Center on Human Policy, Syracuse University, through a contract with the Florida Developmental Disabilities Council

Resource available at http://thechp.syr.edu/floridasa/FloridaGrassrootsSAToolKit.htm

This tool kit has been compiled to support the development and growth of an independent, grassroots self-advocacy movement within the state of Florida. While some of the content is specific to Florida, other content is applicable to any self-advocacy group in any state. Topics covered include: how to form a group, role and responsibility of the group advisor, choosing an issue, and financing a group. There is also a comprehensive list of self-advocacy resources. The appendix discusses the formation of a state self-advocacy organization.

Published By: Florida Developmental Disabilities Council, Inc.

Resource available at http://www.going-to-college.org

This website is a comprehensive resource for teens with disabilities who are considering going to college. It includes information such as how to plan and set goals for college and what to expect from campus life.

Published By: Virginia Commonwealth University

Author: National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability

Resource available at http://www.ncwd-youth.info/information-brief-22

This InfoBrief explores the importance of making informed decisions about diploma options and understanding the consequences of graduating with different types of diplomas. It also highlights the need for youth, families, and Individual Education Program (IEP) teams to consider these issues early.

Published By: National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability

The HEATH Resource Center of The George Washington University, Graduate School of Education and Human Development, is an online clearinghouse on postsecondary education for individuals with disabilities. The clearinghouse gathers, develops, and disseminates information in the form of resource papers, fact sheets, website directories, newsletters, and resource materials.

Author: Alan Foley

Resource available at http://iadvocate.syr.edu/

The goal of iAdvocate is to share and develop specific strategies for parents to work collaboratively with a school team to improve their children's education. iAdvocate uses problem-based learning strategies and simulations, and provides contextual access resources to build parental advocacy skills and knowledge.

Published By: Syracuse University, School of Education

Author: The Arc of Texas and Advocacy, Inc.

Resource available at http://www.thearcoftexas.org, http://www.advocacyinc.org

This manual is designed to help parents become familiar with the requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) so they can act as equal partners in educational planning. It includes much general information about the special education process, as well as a listing of numerous Texas special education resources.

Published By: The Arc of Texas and Advocacy, Inc.

Author: Boerne ISD, Finding My Voice project

Resource available at http://www.txddc.state.tx.us/resources/publications/productsboerne.asp

The Finding My Voice project, of the Boerne ISD, produced this set of three workbooks for students with disabilities. The purpose of these workbooks is to promote students' choice and control within the ARD/IEP process by helping them to understand the process and prepare for the meetings. The workbooks are designed to be used in conjunction with a teacher or facilitator.

Published By: Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities