Welcome to Exceptional Student Services – where our mission is to work with you to remove barriers that impact student growth and achievement.
Our services include Special Education School and Instructional Supports, Nursing Services, Special Services(Speech, OT/PT, Vision, Hearing), Mental Health and Student Safety, Section 504, Child Find (ages 3-5 years) Transition Services (15-21 years) and much more.
The mission of the Special Education Department is to collaboratively engage with school staff to develop capacities designed to improve academic, social and emotional outcomes for students with disabilities and their families. DPS accomplishes this mission by developing an understanding of the specific context of each school, providing professional expertise, and building a plan of support together.
Special Education services are provided at all DPS schools and DPS charter schools. In addition, for those students whose IEPs require it, Special Education provides extended supports for students who need Extended School Year services, Homebound services, or facility placements.
Transition services for students with disabilities are a coordinated set of services, supports, and programming in schools and in the community that are driven by student-centered planning, authentic family involvement, and student self-determined goals for life after high school in career, education & independent living. The transition process should start no later than age 15 and could span until the end of the last semester a student turns 21. In order to ensure that all students with disabilities have access to Transition services directly related to their post-school outcomes, we will provide programming aligned to DPS graduation requirements to support essential skills attainment and The Continuum of Services for College and Career Readiness.
The Mental Health and Student Safety Team advocates, collaborates, and educates to promote resilience and belonging for all students. We support the mental health and well-being of students through culturally-responsive prevention and intervention services. This includes work encompassing student safety supports, services for students with disabilities, mental health evaluation and intervention, and substance use prevention and intervention.
The Child Find team supports preschool-age children with screening, evaluation and implementation of special education services to ensure that every incoming preschooler has equitable access to the classroom, being supported in any area of need they may require.
The Special Services teams support students with disabilities on Individualized Education Plans and Section 504 Plans, as well as students in general education in the areas of Audiology, Deaf/Hard of Hearing Education, Educational Sign Language Interpreting, Vision Education, including Brailling, Orientation and Mobility services, Occupational and Physical Therapy services, and Speech-Language services.
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