Child find program under way on Coast
Child Find, an ongoing effort to locate, identify and evaluate children 21 years of age and younger who are physically, mentally, communicatively and/or emotionally disabled, is underway along the Coast.
In addition, each school district shall be in compliance with the guidelines of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Amendment Act of 1990 (P L. 101-645), Section VI. Each district will provide comparable educational and supportive services to all homeless children and youth.
Early identification of children in need of special education is most important to each child. The information gathered from parents and agencies is used to determine program needs and make free public education available to all disabled children.
Information regarding children will be maintained by the school district and will be provided to other agencies only in accordance with the Family Rights and Privacy Act.
Each school district provides services for the following disabilities: speech and language, autism, traumatic brain injuries, learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities, visual impairments, hearing impairments, developmental delays, orthopedic impairments, other health impairments and emotional disabilities, as well as combinations of some disabilities.
Parents or guardians with disabled children ages birth through 21 who are not currently receiving services are encouraged to contact the Child Find coordinator in their districts for information.
The Child Find coordinators for each district are:
Bay St. Louis-Waveland: Rhonda Herrington, 201 Carroll Ave., Bay St. Louis; 467-1021
Biloxi: Georgene Johnson, P.O. Box 168, Biloxi; 435-4600
George County: Donna Dixon, 168 Commerce St., Lucedale; 601-947-6993
Gulfport: Jennifer Moak, 2014 Pass Road, Gulfport; 865-4678
Hancock County: Kelly Schwartz, 17304 Mississippi 603, Kiln; 466-6340
Harrison County: Rhoda Williams, 16049 Orange Grove Road; 832-9344
Jackson County: Stewart Hurley, P.O. Box 5248, Vancleave; 826-1757
Long Beach: Kathleen Hodgins, 19148 Commission Road, Long Beach; 864-8085
Moss Point: Gennette Kimber, 4924 Church St., Moss Point; 475-0946
Ocean Springs: Grant Dickinson, P.O. Box 7002, Ocean Springs; 875-5782
Pascagoula: Patricia Keaney, P.O. Box 250, Pascagoula; 938-6488
Pass Christian: Doris Flettrich, 6457 Kiln-Delisle Road, Pass Christian; 255-6205
Pearl River County: Mike Posey, 7391 Mississippi 11, Carriere; 601-798-1912
Picayune: Diane Wise, 622 Goodyear Blvd., Picayune; 601-798-4555
Poplarville: Shannon Anderson, 302 S. Julia St., Poplarville; 601-795-6153
Stone County: Wendy Rogers, 214 Critz St., Wiggins; 601-928-6448
This story was originally published November 9, 2015 at 6:38 PM with the headline "Child find program under way on Coast ."