Pupil Services in the North Hills School District includes special education, gifted education and guidance, student health and early intervention services.
- Learning Support - For students whose primary identified need is academic learning
- Gifted Support - For students who show outstanding intellectual ability which requires more enrichment activities and opportunities in and out of the classroom
- Emotional Support - Students with personal, behavioral or emotional issues that interfere with learning and adjustment
- Life Skills Support - For students who need to develop skills for independent living
- Speech and Language Support - For students with communication impairments which affect their academic achievement
- Hearing Impaired Support - For students with hearing impairments which interfere with the development of their communication processes
- Visually Impaired Support - For students who have a visual impairment which adversely affects their educational performance
- Autistic Support - For students who need specialized education services to effectively meet the needs of autism
Services for School Age Exceptional Children
North Hills provides a free, appropriate public education to exceptional students according to state and federal mandates. To be eligible, the child must be of school age, need specially designed instruction and meet eligibility criteria for mentally gifted and/or one or more of the following:
- Intellectual disability
- Hearing impairment
- Speech or language impairment
- Visual impairment(including blindness)
- Emotional disturbance
- Orthopedic impairment
- Autism
- Traumatic brain injury
- Other health impairment
- Specific learning disability
- Deafness
- Deaf-blindness
- Multiple disabilities
Services designed to meet the needs of eligible students include the annual development of an individualized education program (IEP), periodic multidisciplinary re-evaluation, supportive intervention in the regular class or in a special education resource program, placement in a itinerant or supplemental special education class in a regular school or placement in a full-time special education class outside of the regular school. The extent of special education services and the location for the delivery of such services are determined by the parents and staff at the IEP team meeting and is based on the student's identified needs and abilities, chronological age and the level of intensity of the specified intervention.
The school district also provides related services, such as transportation, speech and language therapy, physical therapy and occupational therapy that are necessary to enable the student to derive educational benefits.
Services for Disabled Preschool Age Children
Act 212, the Early Intervention System Act, entitles all preschool age children with disabilities to appropriate early intervention services. Young children experiencing developmental delays or physical or mental disabilities are eligible for early intervention services.
The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare is responsible for providing services to children from birth through two years of age. Contact The Alliance for Infants and Toddlers at 412-885-6000.
The Pennsylvania Department is responsible for providing services to preschool age children from ages three through five. Contact Project DART at 412-394-5736.
Services for Protected Handicapped Students
In compliance with state and federal law, the North Hills School District will provide to each protected handicapped student without discrimination or cost to the student or family, those related aids, services, or accommodations which are needed to provide equal opportunity to participate in and obtain the benefits of the school program and extracurricular activities to the maximum extent appropriate to the student's abilities. In order to qualify as a protected handicapped student, the child must be of school age with a physical or mental disability which substantially limits or prohibits participation in, or access to, any aspect of the school program.
These services and protections for "protected handicapped students" are distinct from those applicable to all eligible or exceptional students enrolled (or seeking enrollment) in special education programs.
To qualify for services as a "Protected Handicapped Student" the referred person must be of an age to which public education is offered in his/her school district.