I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce myself as the Director of Special Education for the Ascension Public Schools. As your student begins receiving special education services in our district for the first time or if your child has already been receiving services, I want you to know that we are excited to have the honor of partnering with you and serving your child.

The purpose of this Special Education Parent Toolkit is to give you some information about special education in Ascension Public Schools. It can also serve as a place for you to keep important information about your child’s Individualized Education Program (IEP). We have included some resources for you and encourage you to take a look at our newly revised website for more detailed information (AscensionSchools.org/specialeducation). We will occasionally send updates to this toolkit and hope that it is helpful for you to have a binder to keep as your child progresses through grade levels. Our special education department is committed to supporting parents and working together to help your child be successful. There are several ways that our department engages with families, such as through email communication, IEP check-ins, and our Special Education Advisory Council. Information about this is included in this Special Education Parent Toolkit. Welcome, we look forward to working with you and your child.

Sincerely,

Lynn Hathaway

Meet the Parent Facilitators:

We would like to welcome you to the Ascension Parish School System Special Education Department. As parent facilitators, we are here to serve as a liaison as well as to assist you in obtaining information about programs, services, and resources available to meet the needs of children with special needs. - Jamekco Lewis and Sara Recile

Jamekco Lewis

Lowery Middle School

2389 LA-1

Donaldsonville, LA 70346

(225) 391-7550

Sara Recile

LeBlanc Special Services

611 N. Burnside Ave.

Gonzales, La. 70737

(225) 391-7269

Parent Resources

Community Supports

Families Helping Families: FHF of Greater Baton Rouge is a non-profit resource center organized and directed by family members of individuals with disabilities. They support families whose members have physical, cognitive, mental, emotional, or behavioral disabilities. They serve the following parishes — East Baton Rouge, West Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, West Feliciana, Ascension, Pointe Coupee, and Iberville.

Office for Citizens with Developmental Disabilities: OCDD serves as the Single Point of Entry (SPOE) into the developmental disabilities services system and oversees public and private residential services and other services for people with developmental disabilities.

Capitol Area Human Resources District: CAHSD is the public service provider for mental health, addictive disorders and developmental disabilities services in the Capital Area (Ascension, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Pointe Coupee, West Baton Rouge and West Feliciana parishes).

Exceptional Lives: Exceptional Lives encourages and guides families and providers caring for children with disabilities by offering information, advocacy and skill-building tools, and connections to other caregivers. They support family resiliency through clear, compassionate guidance grounded in their own personal experience.

Click the link below for Upcoming Webinars:

These free webinars are for parents and providers caring for children with disabilities.

https://www.exceptionallives.org/webinars#calendar

Special Education Community Events

TEAM OF DREAMS LEAGUE & FIELD

Registration for Team of Dreams Ascension is now open. It is an all-Abilities Baseball League serving the youth and young adults of Ascension parish and surrounding areas. This league is for persons who use wheelchairs, persons with physical disabilities, or persons with intellectual disabilities. This league is meant for young and adult athletes!

If you have an interest in participating, volunteering, or would like more information, please contact Lance Kohan at 225.354.6243 or email Lance@gonzalesla.com.

Registration: https://gonzalesla.com/community-3/sports/

Buddy Walk

The Baton Rouge Down Syndrome Awareness Group Buddy Walk Event was held held Saturday, March 26, 2022. For information, click the link below. Check this site for 2023 date coming soon!

https://dsagbr.org/buddy-walk/

Special Olympics

Through the power of sports, our athletes find joy, confidence, and fulfillment - on the playing field and in life.

Ascension Parish hosted Special Olympics Time Trials in the early months of 2023 for Ascension public school students. Please contact your child's teacher for more information on upcoming Time Trials in 2024.

Primary & Elementary

Primary Schools

Elementary Schools

Middle

Middle Schools

High

High Schools

Other Programs

Other Programs

In This Section

Parent Resources

Summer Opportunities:

Important Links:

APSB Policies: Special Education

Parent Toolkit

Meet the Parent Facilitators:

Jamekco Lewis

Sara Recile

Parent Resources

Community Supports

Special Education Community Events

TEAM OF DREAMS LEAGUE & FIELD

Special Olympics

Transition Resources

Contact Us

Links & Resources