Who is Eligible to Receive Special Education Services?

Children are eligible to receive Special Education and related services when the IEP team determines that the child meets state and federal eligibility criteria and requires special education services. Not all children with special needs require special education services. There are fourteen categories of eligibility for special education: Specific Learning Disability, Speech or Language Impairment, Intellectual Disability, Multiple Disabilities, Emotional Disturbance, Traumatic Brain Injury, Autism, Other Health Impairment, Visual Impairment, Deafness, Orthopedic Impairment, Deaf/Blindness, Hard of Hearing, and Established Medical Disability (0-5 years old). Most students are served through district programs, including Resource Specialist Programs, Special Day Classes, and Related Services. Some students, whose needs cannot be met in district programs, are served in either county or non-public school programs.