California Parent Organizations and the California Department of Education

The California Department of Education (CDE), Special Education Division, works closely with federal- and-state-funded parent organizations to increase parent participation and collaboration between parents and educators to improve the educational system.

The web page contains a description of and listings of the regional offices throughout California of three different organizations that support families of children with disabilities with information and training to help them with the education of their children. They include: Family Empowerment Centers, Parent Training and Information Centers and California Community Parent Resource Centers. Each one has a different focus and they may overlap with each other.

Another important type of parent organization is the federally funded Family Resource Centers for families with infants and toddlers with disabilities in early intervention. Those organizations can be found on the County Specific Resources area of the MAP Website.

Senate Bill 511, Family Empowerment Centers

The Family Empowerment Centers (FECs) provide training and information to families of children and young adults with disabilities, between the ages of 3 and 22. These parent-led nonprofit organizations offer specialized training, peer-to-peer support, information and referral services. They aim to assist parents to better understand their child’s educational and developmental needs, effectively communicate with service providers, serve as a resource for the individual education plan process, participate in school reform and improvement activities, promote alternative dispute resolution, and support positive relationships between parents and professionals. Services available through each FEC vary based on the needs of the community.

Parent Training and Information Center

Each Parent Training and Information Center (PTIC) is a parent-directed non-profit 501(c)(3) organization funded and managed by the Office of Special Education Programs at the U.S. Department of Education, under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The California Department of Education coordinates with the PTICs on initiatives and opportunities for parent support statewide.

The PTICs provide a variety of direct services for children and youth with disabilities, families, professionals, and other organizations that support them. Some of the activities include:

Working with families of infants, toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities, birth to twenty-six
Helping parents participate effectively in their children’s education and development
Partnering with professionals and policy makers to improve outcomes for all children with disabilities

California Community Parent Resource Centers

Background

The Community Parent Resource Center (CPRC), are managed and funded by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and, as described in 20 United States Code 1472, will help ensure that underserved parents of children, ages birth through twenty-six with disabilities, including low-income parents, parents of limited English-proficient children, and parents with disabilities, have the training and information the parents need to enable the parents to participate effectively in helping their children with disabilities.

Each CPRC shall:

Provide training and information that meets the training and information needs of parents of children with disabilities,
Carry out the activities required of PTICs, and
Be designed to meet the specific needs of families who experience significant isolation from available sources of information and support.

Positive Parenting, Thriving Kids Project

We all want to help our kids thrive, but sometimes it’s hard to know how. When you run into parenting challenges, having reliable guidance to turn to can make a big difference.

The Positive Parenting, Thriving Kids Project is a series of 20 free videos that feature more than 150 caregivers, kids, and experts talking about some of the most pressing, confusing, and challenging questions that parents face. With support from California Governor Gavin Newsom, First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom, and the Department of Health Care Services, these videos are designed to help every parent and caregiver in California and beyond support their kids’ mental health fitness and self-esteem in today’s stressful world.

The series is organized into four categories, each containing multiple videos. Each video has been created in both English and Spanish. Ver episodios en español ▸

For each video topic, you’ll also find a downloadable learning guide with tips, tools, and suggestions for additional evidence-based resources and programs that may help you and your family.

You may start with the Self-Care and Parent-Child Relationships videos here.

Technical Assistance Resources for Part C Eligibility

Working Together to Support All Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities Webinar Series

This webinar series highlights how federal agencies, State agencies, local programs, and families can work together to support infants and toddlers with disabilities’ growth and development. Presenters will share new materials that highlight a vision for serving all infants and toddlers with delays and disabilities and provide strategies and resources on implementing an equitable and comprehensive system that identifies, locates, and evaluates infants and toddlers with delays and disabilities.

Building Blocks for Including and Teaching Young Children with Disabilities (Video)

This edWebinar provides information about the development, use and latest revision to Building Blocks for Teaching Preschoolers with Special Needs, a multi-tiered framework for planning and providing individualized support and instruction for young children with disabilities or other special needs. Learn about the four levels of support as well as practical, research-based practices for use in inclusive classrooms and other early learning environments. Become familiar with our various forms and resources for planning, teaching, and monitoring children’s progress. This presentation is of interest to preK teachers and school and district leaders, and early childhood faculty, early childhood special education faculty, and curriculum and instruction department chairs.

2024 International Early Childhood Inclusion Institute

The theme for the institute is All Means All: Embracing Disability and Intersectionality. Attend in person in Chapel Hill, NC, USA, or virtually from anywhere in the world. Learn more about registration rates, logistics, and start planning now

Location: Chapel Hill, NC or Virtual
Dates: May 7-9, 2024

SIP Supporting Inclusive Practices 3rd Annual Inclusion Conference

Location: Virtual
Dates: May 9-10, 2024

US Department of Health and Human Services: Dear Colleague Letter on Mixed Delivery

We are writing to encourage you to work with local educational agencies and early childhood partners in your states and communities to serve more of our youngest learners in high-quality preschool¹ through a mixed delivery approach. A mixed delivery approach involves a coordinated effort on the part of States and local communities to support preschool programs across a range of quality settings, building on the expertise and capacity of existing providers and leveraging existing Federal, state, and local funding.

By forging these partnerships, early childhood leaders have an opportunity to amplify the benefits of a mixed delivery approach. The letter lays out a series of benefits including:

Supporting parents in selecting a setting and location that best meets their child’s and family’s needs, such as providing a longer program day or more flexible scheduling offered in many child care programs, or allowing older and younger siblings to attend the same site;
Improving access to early intervention and early childhood special education in inclusive early childhood settings to provide more seamless experiences for development and learning for children with disabilities;
Supporting smooth transitions between preschool and kindergarten, laying a path for success in the early elementary years.

US Department of Education: 2023 Early Childhood Transition Questions and Answers OSEP QA 24-01

The purpose of this IDEA 2023 Early Childhood Transition Questions and Answers document (2023 EC Transition Q&A) under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is to assist State lead agencies (LAs), early intervention services (EIS) program and providers,^[1] State educational agencies (SEAs), and local educational agencies (LEAs) in ensuring a seamless transition for children with disabilities who received EIS under IDEA Part C to eligibility for and receipt of preschool services under IDEA Part B. https://sites.ed.gov/idea/files/2023-Early-Childhood-Transition-Questions-and-Answers.pdf

Pathways to Partnership (P2P)

Pathways to Partnership (P2P), the California Department of Education Special Education Resource Lead (SERL) for Alternative Dispute Resolution would like to announce the launch of their website and their Spring 2024 Learning and Professional Development Series. Resources and information related to events and learning opportunities are updated regularly on the P2P website.

The P2P consortium envisions a statewide educational community with the necessary skill sets to prevent, reduce, and resolve conflicts by building trust and mutual understanding between families and local educational agencies (LEAs). P2P is a SERL with a focus building a continuum of dispute prevention and resolution among families, students, and schools.

Universal Preschool (UPK) Mixed Delivery Quality and Access Workgroup Final Report

Pursuant to EC Section 8202.6, the Superintendent, in consultation with the Director of Social Services and the Executive Director of the State Board of Education (SBE), is required to convene a universal preschool (UPK) mixed-delivery statewide interest holder workgroup (Workgroup). As part of a statewide collaborative effort, the California Department of Education (CDE) has welcomed the partnership of the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC).

You can learn about the purpose, members and work of this group on their web page.

The work of this group is coming to a close. The second consolidated draft of the UPK Mixed Delivery Quality and Access Report is now posted to California Educators Together.

California Parent Organizations and the California Department of Education