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Farmingdale School District

Once A Daler, Always A Daler

Student Services / Special Education Home

Student Services / Special Education

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Donald Cassidy
Director K-12 Special Education / Pupil Personnel Services / Psychology / Speech
516-434-5180/5189

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Dr. Yuvelin Baltar
Chair Middle School Special Education, Psychologists, and Speech 6-8
516-434-5180

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Gina Callesano
Chair Preschool and Primary Special Education, Speech K-5
516-434-5189

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Brian Norton
Chair High School
516-434-5240

Mail

Farmingdale Public Schools 50 Van Cott Avenue Farmingdale, NY 11735

Special Education Services for Student with Disabilities

The Farmingdale School District is committed to the development and implementation of an appropriate education for students with disabilities residing in the district. The Committee on Preschool Special Education (CPSE), and the Committee on Special Education (CSE) and appropriate Subcommittees on Special Education are established for the purpose of evaluating students suspected of having disabilities and for placement of students with disabilities in appropriate programs. The CPSE and CSE provide a free, appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment for resident children between the ages of three (3) and twenty-one (21), or until the student has achieved a regular high school diploma, whichever occurs first. Students with disabilities have the opportunity to participate in school district programs to the maximum extent appropriate to the needs of each student, including access to the general education curriculum and extracurricular programs and activities, which are available to all other students enrolled in the district's public schools.

Special education services are provided at all levels, K-12, in the Farmingdale School District. In addition, a pre-school student with a disability may have special needs that require appropriate services. All children are evaluated and recommended for services by the Committee on Special Education (CSE) or the Committee on Pre-School Education (CPSE). If parents or guardians suspect their school-age child has a disability, they can refer their child to the Committee on Special Education by calling 516-434-5180. For information about a pre-school child who may have a disability, please call the Special Education office at 516-434-5189. Referrals in writing should be sent to the Farmingdale Schools Special Education Department, 50 Van Cott Avenue, Farmingdale, NY 11735.

Assistance, Resources and Advocacy

Committee on PreSchool Education

Hearbuilder

Parents can sign up for a free 14-day trial of this online foundational literacy program.

HearBuilder is an online software program for students PreK-8 that focuses on improving listening, auditory comprehension, and memory retrieval skills. It helps children build a strong foundation for literacy and reading.

The HearBuilder collection consists of four award-winning software titles: Following Directions, Phonological Awareness, Auditory Memory, and Sequencing.

HearBuilder gives students access to research-based, interactive programs by online subscription. Students can use the software on a tablet, laptop, or desktop in the classroom, media center, computer lab, and at home. Each program offers multi-level activities with progress monitoring reports for parents, educators and administrators to track student progress across grades, subgroups, and schools.

Legislation and Regulations

 

Recreational Programs

Specific Disabilities

Testing, Vocational, Graduation Information

Transition Resources for Parents and Students

School Psychology

THE MISUNDERSTOOD CHILD

I am the child that looks healthy and fine.
I was born with ten fingers and toes.
But something is different, somewhere in my mind.
And what it is, nobody knows.

I am the child that struggles in school,
Though they say that I'm perfectly smart.
They tell me I'm lazy - can learn if I try
- But I don't seem to know where to start.

I am the child that won't wear the clothes
Which hurt me or bother my feet.
I dread sudden noises, can't handle most smells,
And tastes - there are few foods I'll eat.

I am the child that can't catch the ball
And runs with an awkward gait.
I am the one chosen last on the team
And I cringe as I stand there and wait.

I am the child with whom no one will play
- The one that gets bullied and teased.
I try to fit in and I want to be liked,
But nothing I do seems to please.

I am the child that tantrums and freaks
Over things that seem petty and trite.
You'll never know how I panic inside,
When I'm lost in my anger and fright.

I am the child that fidgets and squirms
Though I'm told to sit still and be good
Do you think that I choose to be out of control?
Don't you know that I would if I could?

I am the child with the broken heart
Though I act like I don't really care.
Perhaps there's a reason God made me this way -
Some message He sent me to share.

For I am the child that needs to be loved
And accepted and valued too.
I am the child that is misunderstood,
I am different - but look just like you.

- Kathy Winters, 2003

I do not choose to be a common man.
It is my right to be uncommon- if I can.
I seek opportunity- not security.
I do not wish to be a kept citizen,
humbled and dulled by having the state look after me.
I want to take the calculated risk
to dream and to build, to fail and to succeed.

- Henry Viscardi, 1967