Senate
File
2342
-
Introduced
SENATE
FILE
2342
BY
SCHMITZ
A
BILL
FOR
An
Act
providing
for
a
deaf
and
hard-of-hearing
children’s
1
educational
bill
of
rights.
2
BE
IT
ENACTED
BY
THE
GENERAL
ASSEMBLY
OF
THE
STATE
OF
IOWA:
3
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2342
Section
1.
NEW
SECTION
.
256I.1
Short
title.
1
This
chapter
shall
be
known
and
may
be
cited
as
the
“Deaf
and
2
Hard-of-Hearing
Children’s
Educational
Bill
of
Rights”
.
3
Sec.
2.
NEW
SECTION
.
256I.2
Findings
and
purpose.
4
1.
Findings.
The
general
assembly
finds
all
of
the
5
following:
6
a.
Hearing
loss
affects
the
most
basic
human
need
of
7
communication.
Without
quality
communication,
a
child
is
8
isolated
from
other
human
beings
and
from
the
exchange
of
9
knowledge
essential
for
educational
growth,
both
planned
and
10
incidental,
and,
therefore,
cannot
fully
develop
the
academic,
11
social,
and
emotional
skills
required
to
become
a
productive,
12
capable
adult,
and
a
full
participatory
member
of
society.
13
b.
Children
with
hearing
loss
have
the
same
innate
14
capabilities
as
any
other
children.
They
may
communicate
in
a
15
wide
variety
of
manual
and
spoken
modes
or
systems
of
English.
16
Some
use
aural/oral
modes
of
communication,
while
others
use
a
17
combination
of
aural/oral
and
manual
modes
of
communication.
18
Many
use
American
sign
language.
19
c.
Therefore,
it
is
critical
that
all
Iowans
work
toward
20
ensuring
that
all
of
the
following
will
occur:
21
(1)
Parents
or
guardians
have
full
and
informed
22
participation
in
their
children’s
educational
planning.
23
(2)
Families
of
children
who
are
deaf
or
hard-of-hearing
24
receive
accurate,
balanced,
and
complete
information
regarding
25
their
child’s
educational
and
communication
needs.
26
(3)
Parents
or
guardians
have
information
on
all
available
27
programmatic,
placement,
and
resource
options,
including
28
special
school
participation.
29
(4)
Families
of
children
who
are
deaf
or
hard-of-hearing
30
have
access
to
support
services
and
advocacy
resources
from
31
public
and
private
agencies
and
all
other
institutions
and
32
resources
knowledgeable
about
hearing
loss
and
the
needs
of
33
children
who
are
deaf
or
hard-of-hearing.
34
(5)
Deaf
and
hard-of-hearing
children,
like
all
children,
35
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2342
have
direct,
quality,
ongoing,
and
fluid
communication,
both
in
1
and
out
of
the
classroom.
2
(6)
Deaf
and
hard-of-hearing
children
are
placed
in
3
the
least
restrictive
educational
environment.
For
deaf
4
and
hard-of-hearing
children
that
environment
should
be
5
an
accessible,
language
rich
environment,
and
services
6
are
provided
based
on
the
children’s
unique
communication,
7
language,
and
educational
needs,
consistent
with
20
U.S.C.
§
8
1414(d)(3)(B)(iv)
of
the
federal
Individuals
with
Disabilities
9
Education
Act.
10
(7)
Deaf
and
hard-of-hearing
children
are
given
an
11
education
in
which
they
have
access
to
teachers,
related
12
service
providers,
and
evaluators
who
understand
the
unique
13
nature
of
deafness,
and
are
specifically
trained
to
work
14
with
hard-of-hearing
and
deaf
pupils
and
can
communicate
15
spontaneously
and
fluidly
with
these
children.
16
(8)
Deaf
and
hard-of-hearing
children,
like
all
children,
17
have
the
benefit
of
an
education
in
which
there
are
a
18
sufficient
number
of
age-appropriate
peers
and
adults
with
whom
19
they
can
interact
and
communicate
directly
or,
as
appropriate,
20
through
the
use
of
qualified
and
licensed
interpreters.
21
(9)
Deaf
and
hard-of-hearing
children
can
receive
an
22
education
in
which
they
are
exposed
to
and
interact
with
deaf
23
and
hard-of-hearing
role
models.
24
(10)
Deaf
and
hard-of-hearing
children,
like
all
children,
25
have
direct
and
appropriate
communication
access
to
all
typical
26
components
of
the
educational
process,
including
recess,
lunch,
27
and
extracurricular,
social,
and
athletic
activities.
28
(11)
Deaf
and
hard-of-hearing
children,
like
all
children,
29
are
provided
with
programs
in
which
transition
planning,
as
30
required
under
the
federal
Individuals
with
Disabilities
31
Education
Act,
focuses
on
their
unique
vocational
and
academic
32
needs.
33
(12)
Deaf
and
hard-of-hearing
children
have
the
right
to
34
early
intervention
to
facilitate
the
acquisition
of
a
solid
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2342
language
base
or
bases
to
be
developed
at
the
earliest
possible
1
age.
2
2.
Purpose.
Given
the
central
importance
of
communication
3
to
all
human
beings,
the
purpose
of
this
chapter
is
to
4
encourage
the
development
of
a
communication-driven
and
5
language-driven
educational
delivery
system
in
Iowa
that
6
supports
the
emotional
and
social
development
of
children
who
7
are
deaf
or
hard-of-hearing.
8
Sec.
3.
NEW
SECTION
.
256I.3
Educational
rights
of
deaf
and
9
hard-of-hearing
children
——
recommendations.
10
1.
The
general
assembly
encourages
the
development
and
11
regular
updating
of
specific
recommendations
by
all
state
12
agencies,
institutions,
and
political
subdivisions
of
the
13
state
concerned
with
early
intervention,
early
childhood,
and
14
kindergarten
through
twelfth
grade
education
of
students
who
15
are
deaf
or
hard-of-hearing,
including
but
not
limited
to
the
16
department
of
education,
the
Iowa
school
for
the
deaf,
and
17
the
department
of
public
health,
to
ensure
that
children
who
18
are
deaf
or
hard-of-hearing
have
an
educational
environment
19
in
which
their
language
and
communication
needs
are
fully
20
addressed
and
developed
and
in
which
they
have
early,
ongoing,
21
and
quality
access
to
planned
and
incidental
communication
22
opportunities.
23
2.
The
recommendations,
consistent
with
the
findings
and
24
purpose
of
this
chapter,
should
be
completed
and
regularly
25
updated
by
the
state
agencies,
institutions,
and
political
26
subdivisions
addressed
by
this
section.
27
EXPLANATION
28
This
bill
provides
for
the
deaf
and
hard-of-hearing
29
children’s
educational
bill
of
rights
in
new
Code
chapter
256I.
30
New
Code
section
256I.1
provides
that
Code
chapter
256I
31
may
be
cited
as
the
“Deaf
and
Hard-of-hearing
Children’s
32
Educational
Bill
of
Rights”.
33
New
Code
section
256I.2
lists
legislative
findings
as
to
the
34
need
for
the
new
Code
chapter
and
states
a
purpose.
35
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2342
New
Code
section
256I.3
encourages
state
agencies,
1
institutions,
and
political
subdivisions
of
the
state
concerned
2
with
the
education
of
such
children
to
develop
and
regularly
3
update
recommendations
for
meeting
the
educational
needs
of
4
deaf
and
hard-of-hearing
children.
5
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