State News And Events

Second Annual Regional RTI-PLC Institute held in Washington State
Five area school districts, Education Service District 123, and Washington State University Tri-Cities offered the Second Annual RTI-PLC Institute on August 23 and 24 in Richland, WA. The Response to Intervention (RTI) Professional Learning Community (PLC) Institute was titled “Improving Learning for ALL Students,” and featured key speakers from across the nation. NCRTI Technical Assistance Provider Jenny Scala presented on the challenges of implementing RTI in high schools and Dr. Evelyn Johnson, a NCRTI-sponsored trainer, presented on using data to inform eligibility decisions. Visit the Education Service District 123 website to learn more about the institute.   

Resources From Our Partners

The Meadows Center Presents Gearing Up for Implementation and A “To Do” List for School Leaders
With this resource, learn how to build capacity to implement RTI. The Meadows Center at the University of Texas at Austin provides this recorded presentation to help school leaders identify initial steps for implementation. Ideas and procedures that may help reallocate instructional and administrative resources are discussed to more effectively support all students, including those who are struggling. While watching the recording, you can pause the presentation to allow time to complete the accompanying “To Do” list. View the recording and learn more about the Meadows Center at their website.

Recorded Webinar on Fidelity of Implementation Available from the New England Comprehensive Center
The first webinar produced by the Response to Intervention Leaders Regional Project of the New England Comprehensive Center is now available as a recording online. This webinar given by Dr. Claudia Rinaldi is focused on planning for fidelity of implementation. Access the webinar and read the synopsis.

U.S. Department of Education

OSEP Held 2011 Leadership Mega Conference Focused on Collaboration to Achieve Success from Cradle to Career 2.0
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) held the 2011 OSEP Leadership Mega Conference August 1-3, 2011 in Crystal City, VA. The goals of the conference were to increase participants’ knowledge of legislation, priorities, and initiatives within the Department of Education, and efforts to align requirements and increase collaboration among offices; increase participants’ understanding of policies and practices that foster achievement across an individual’s lifespan; strengthen collaboration among states, constituencies, and agencies; and promote the use of high quality data to drive program improvement. The conference agenda, conference presentations, and a brief video about the conference can be found on the conference website. 

New IES Report Provides National Assessment of IDEA
The Institute of Education Sciences recently released the latest national assessment of IDEA, which reviews how states and districts put IDEA into practice. Results indicate the widespread use of RTI across the country. Specifically, at the state level, all but two states have state-level RTI working groups with 40 reporting they have provided training on RTI, 39 having state guidelines and 39 with RTI information available on the State website; at the district level, 71 percent of districts across the nation reported using RTI; at the school level, 61 percent of elementary schools, 45 percent of middle schools and 29 percent of high schools reported using RTI.  Across the nation the majority of RTI efforts are led jointly by special education and general education. Findings also indicated that a variety of funding sources were used to support RTI including district, Title I, IDEA, and other funding sources. View the whole report for additional information on RTI implementation and IDEA.

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