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Students and Parents

Empowering Students and Parents (ESP) was developed to provide technical assistance, expertise, and encouragement to students with disabilities, and the parents, families, and caregivers who support them. ESP uses a tailored style of outreach, where students and their needs are evaluated and supported individually. Through a partnership with the United Way of the Piedmont, ESP is operating in Union County Public Schools with plans for expansion into other counties.

DAC Director of Programs Services speaks to a group of parents at a PTA meeting.

 

ESP operates with three basic assumptions...

 

1. All children want to learn.
   
2. All children can learn.
   
3. Some children need different tools or strategies to learn.
   
   

Research has proven that development and learning is accelerated in the early chronological years, and that the timing of strategies is vital to capture optimum readiness. Developmental readiness is the exact stage when a child has the capacity to receive instruction at a given level of difficulty. Early intervention strategies have been shown to be most often successful when there is active participation from all the significant people in a child’s life. The ESP program seeks to involve all of those people in an attempt to promote maximum academic growth.

The mission of the ESP program is to augment the educational and specialized services for students with disabilities in public school settings. This is achieved by providing knowledge, services, and training to students, parents, families, and caregivers in the following areas:

• Effective Communication
• Parents Rights and Responsibilities
• Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
• Individualized Education Plans (IEP)
• Behavioral Intervention Plans (BIP)
• 504 Plans – Civil Rights Law
• Assistive Technology
• Transitioning

Additionally, the ESP program is able to provide disability specific knowledge, as well as information about existing community resources, person centered planning, and sensitivity training. Opportunities to develop a support network, socialize, and advance necessary collaboration between families and faculty are further integral components of the ESP program.

The Disability Action Center is proud to partner with the United Way of the Piedmont.