Indiana Resource Network

Posted: Fri, 09/23/2011 - 9:41am Updated: Mon, 05/17/2021 - 2:02pm

The Indiana Resource Network (IRN) is made possible by the Indiana Department of Education's (IDOE) special education grants. It is comprised of centers that provide targeted, comprehensive support to schools across the state to improve teaching and learning.

	Indiana Center on Teacher Quality ICTQ - Video Overview In partnership with schools, families, agencies and communities, the Indiana Center on Teacher Quality (ICTQ) seeks to improve educational outcomes for students by ensuring their access to a pre-k through 12 continuum of instruction from high quality teachers. ICTQ intends to 1) increase the number of high quality teachers serving students with disabilities by providing job embedded professional development at the state, regional and district levels; 2) increase the number of students with disabilities who have access to a high quality teacher by improving recruitment, support and retention of all teachers who teach students with disabilities across the LRE continuum (general education and special education); and 3) to improve school transitions and post-school outcomes for students with disabilities through partnerships and collaborations among schools, community agencies, higher education and families in a pre-K-12 system of support by aligning the policies and practices of key educational stakeholders across the lifespan serving individuals with disabilities. Project Director: Sandi Cole, Ed.D, cmcole@indiana.edu
	Indiana IEP Resource Center (IEPRC) - Video Overview Focus: To increase knowledge, skills, and capacity of Indiana educators to improve outcomes for students with disabilities. The IEPRC promotes inclusive education with a belief in shared responsibility and equitable access to a strong core curriculum with high quality instruction benefitting all students. The IEPRC provides professional learning and technical assistance statewide which includes developing resources and materials, training and coaching individuals and teams, facilitating statewide and regional collaborative networks, advancing the use of statewide technology during the IEP process, and delivering intensive services and support to districts as assigned by the IDOE. Project Director: Jolly Piersall, jolly.piersall@indstate.edu Website: http://www.indianaieprc.org/
	Project Success - Video Overview Project SUCCESS supports higher academic achievement for students with disabilities. We are building local capacity to ensure that students with significant cognitive disabilities achieve increasingly higher academic outcomes and leave high school ready for post-secondary options. Project SUCCESS strives to support teams of teachers and administrators as they work to implement academic standards into instruction for students with disabilities. Project SUCCESS provides current, research-based resources related to content standards, instructional design, complex communication needs, alternate diploma requirements and student outcomes specifically designed to meet the needs of students with significant disabilities. Project SUCCESS provides support and technical assistance to teachers throughout the state through regional training, on-site visits, coaching, webinars, and by the dissemination of useful information via email and social media. For more information about Project Success, contact: Meredith Keedy-Merk, mkeedymerk@pcgus.com Website: http://www.projectsuccessindiana.com
	*INSOURCE - Video Overview** Focus: Since 1975, the Indiana Resource Center for Families with Special Needs (INSOURCE) has served Indiana’s families of infants, toddlers, children, youth and young adults with disabilities. INSOURCE is a parent organization that equips families and partners with professionals to help students with special needs realize their potential. Through the work and dedication of the Board of Directors, the staff and many volunteers, nearly all of whom are parents of persons with disabilities, INSOURCE, utilizing a proven parent to parent model, has provided assistance, support services and educational resources to the community of individuals and organizations that serve and support persons with disabilities. Through the provision of information, training, individual assistance and support, INSOURCE works to help countless families address the opportunities and challenges of having a loved one with special needs. Executive Director: Joel Boehner, jboehner@insource.org ; Website: http://www.insource.org/
	Pass Project: Promoting Achievement for Students with Sensory Loss - Video Overview The purpose of Promoting Achievement for Students with Sensory Loss (PASS) is to provide statewide support and professional development opportunities for educators to improve instructional quality, promote academic achievement, and foster successful post-secondary transition outcomes for students with sensory loss. This program was developed especially for Indiana teachers, educational interpreters, paraprofessionals, related service personnel, and administrators who serve students who have sensory loss (including blind or low vision; Deaf or hard of hearing; or Deaf-blind). In additional to hosting conferences, workshops, and webinars, the PASS Project facilitates the Visual Impairment Licensure Program and Deaf/Hard of Hearing Licensure Program at Indiana State University. These programs are for individuals who hold a teaching license and wish to obtain training in the area of blind/low vision or deaf/hard of hearing. The PASS Project also supports the Educational Interpreter Mentoring Program. The goal of the program is to guide and assist in the development of educational interpreting skills. An interpreting mentor will be assigned to each mentee to provide support, encouragement, and direct feedback on their interpreting skills. All mentees will have the opportunity to set professional goals and improve their skill level in order to meet the requirements set forth by the state of Indiana. Project Director: Carol Wetherell, Ph.D. ; carol.wetherell@indstate.edu ; Website: https://passprojectisu.org/
	PATINS Project - Video Overview Focus: The PATINS Project is a state-wide technical assistance network that supports Indiana public schools in creating and sustaining an equitable learning environment for every student through assistive and accessible technologies, accessible educational materials, and Universal Design for Learning. As a sole source provider for the Indiana Department of Administration and the Indiana Department of Education, the PATINS Project provides a complete statewide NIMAS delivery process, inclusive of implementation strategies and assistive technology tools designed to support the Indiana Department of Education and LEAs in addressing the statutory and final regulatory requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004, without a fee to Indiana public schools. Project Director: Daniel McNulty; dmcnulty@patinsproject.org ; Website: http://www.patinsproject.org
	Indiana Center for Accessible Instructional Materials (ICAM) Focus: The Indiana Center for Accessible Instructional Materials (ICAM) is a PATINS Project managed web-based system designed to provide supports to Indiana LEAs in meeting the NIMAS regulations of the Individuals with Disabilities Improvement Act of 2004. Our mission is to partner with LEAs in securing accessible textbooks and core curriculum materials in specialized formats for qualifying students with print disabilities. Access to the system, technical support and professional training are provided through the ICAM and PATINS Project without a fee. Project Director: Daniel McNulty; dmcnulty@ciesc.k12.in.us ; Website: http://www.patinsproject.com/icam/icam
	Indiana Secondary Transition Resource Center - Video Overview Focus: To create and deliver professional development activities and resources in order to build statewide capacity of transition-focused educators and improve school and post-school outcomes of young adults with disabilities. The Center's work focuses on student-focused transition planning activities and self-determination skill development, quality Transition IEPs development and alignment, access to effective academic and life-skills instruction, quality work-based learning, interagency collaboration, and family involvement. Project Director: Judith Gross, Ph.D., jmsgross@iu.edu Website: https://instrc.indiana.edu
	The Indiana Disproportionality Resource Center (IDRC) - Video Overview Focus: To assist the Indiana Department of Education in defining and identifying disproportionality in special education, and provides technical assistance to Local Education Agencies (LEAs) in order to increase equity in special education throughout the state. Project Director: Sandi Cole, Ed.D., cmcole@indiana.edu Website: https://indrc.indiana.edu/
	Virtuoso Education Consulting Focus: To empower educators to meet the needs of all students by developing practitioners’ awareness, knowledge, and skills related to best practices in the PK-12 environment. The team helps educators meet school improvement goals, remediate disproportionality, close discipline and achievement gaps, and develop proficiency in culturally responsive practices. Director: Dr. Renae Azziz, razziz@virtuosoed.com, Visit www.virtuosoed.com for more information.
	Indiana School Mental Health Initiative (ISMHI) - Video Overview Vision: Each and every Indiana student is socially, emotionally, behaviorally, mentally, and physically healthy so they are ready to learn and achieve their full potential. Mission: Working alongside school districts and their community partners, we provide resources, training, and advocacy to build their capacity to promote the social, emotional, behavioral, mental, and physical health of Indiana’s school-age children and youth with the goal of increasing school engagement and improving educational and life outcomes. Values and Beliefs: the function of an education is to address the development of the whole child; attachment is the carrier of all development, including learning; meeting the social, emotional, and mental health needs of teachers and other school staff is as important as meeting those of the student’s; and our schools and communities are stronger when we work together. Goals: raise awareness on the effects of trauma, stress, and adversity on social, emotional, and cognitive development; promote the development of multi-tiered, cross-system infrastructures to support school communities in addressing the social, emotional, behavioral, and mental health needs of their students and staff within existing structures; share best and promising practices across Indiana by building a community of practice and harnessing our collective knowledge; identify barriers that exist and work to close gaps in systems; assist school districts in building strong community partnerships and connecting to their local System of Care; and identify funding mechanisms and cross-system collaboration opportunities to promote the above. For more information contact Cathy Pratt, Ph.D., BCBA-D, Director; Website: https://lookupindiana.org/leading-the-way/indiana-school-mental-heath-in...
	The Early Childhood Center (ECC) - Video Overview Focus: ECC is one of six centers at the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community. It provides training, technical assistance, data analyses, and strategic planning to support schools in improving the quality and impact of their preschool programs. Its work has focused on program evaluation and professional development related to inclusive services, universal design, collaborative service approaches, transition, family engagement, and high quality early education practices for all children. ECC has worked with early education programs serving children with and without disabilities throughout Indiana. It also works closely with Indiana’s First Steps system in providing evaluation and continuous quality improvement services. For more information, visit our website at www.iidc.indiana.edu/ecc Director, Michael Conn-Powers, Ph.D., mipower@indiana.edu

Additional Resources

The Indiana Resource Network (IRN) also contains additional valuable resource centers that support teachers, schools and corporations but that are not financially supported by DOE

	PBIS Indiana: Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports Resource Center - Video Overview Focus: To develop and establish a statewide network of culturally responsive school-wide positive behavior support sites and increase educators' knowledge and understanding of how PBIS impacts student achievement, family engagement, dropout rate and least restrictive environment placements. Project Director: Sandi Cole, Ed.D; cmcole@indiana.edu; Website: https://pbis.indiana.edu/
	HANDS (Helping Answer Needs by Developing Specialists) in Autism Resource Center HANDS assists school personnel in improving their knowledge, skill and application of evidence-based educational and behavioral practices rooted in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and related to working with students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) as well as a range of special needs populations. The strategies introduced are consistent with current state and federal practices and emphasize a structured assessment and intervention process designed to foster collaboration, data-driven decision making, and alternatives for discipline as well as improved instruction and limited behavioral challenges in the classroom, school and community settings. A wide range of resources, materials, trainings, consultations and interactive opportunities are available to meet the needs of consumers in learning about and practically applying evidence-based strategies across disciplines, roles and settings with students of all ages and functioning levels. Services and resources are available for free, low cost and fee for service or contractual basis. Please visit us at https://webhands.sitehost.iu.edu/ Project Director: Naomi Swiezy, Ph.D., HSSP; nswiezy@iupui.edu or (317) 274-3935.
	Center on Education and Lifelong Learning (CELL) - Video Overview CELL Projects Applied Improvisation Focus: The Center on Education and Lifelong Learning (CELL) provides tools, training and technical assistance as schools increase student achievement, build staff capacity and align resources. Their work focuses on professional development related to teacher evaluation systems, differentiated instruction, classroom management, co-teaching, instructional consultation teams (ICT), cultural responsive practices, and PBIS. In addition, CELL conducts program evaluations for a variety of district, state and national programs. Project Director: Sandi Cole, Ed.D; cmcole@indiana.edu
	Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education (CDHHE) Focus: To promote positive outcomes for all deaf and hard of hearing children through information, services, and education. The Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education provides direct services and facilitation of services to children birth through school exit. The Indiana State Department of Health has executive oversight of the Center. The Center works directly with school districts, professionals, parents/guardians and State agencies, including the Department of Education, the Indiana School for the Deaf, the Family and Social Services Administration, and the Indiana State Department of Health. The Center is legislated to provide resources, consultation, technical assistance and comprehensive multidisciplinary assessments for children who are deaf and hard of hearing. Executive Director Bethany Colson bcolson@isdh.in.gov Deaf Education Coordinator, Sarah Kiefer, skiefer@isdh.in.gov CDHHE Website: http://cdhhe.isdh.in.gov
	Indiana Deaf-Blind Services Project - Video Overview Focus: The Indiana Deafblind Services Project is designed to improve the quality of educational services available to Indiana's infants, toddlers, children and youth who have a combined vision and hearing loss. Project Director: Carol Wetherell, Ph.D. ; carol.wetherell@indstate.edu ; Website: https://www.indbservices.org
	The Indiana Resource Center for Autism (IRCA) - Video Overview Focus: The Indiana Resource Center for Autism staff are actively engaged in work that leads to improved outcomes for individuals on the autism spectrum and related disorders, and their families by providing professionals, family members, and individuals with ASD with the knowledge and skills to support children and adults in typical early intervention, school, community, work, postsecondary and home settings. The work of IRCA covers a wide range of activities focused on building local capacity via information development and dissemination, customized trainings, statewide conferences, individual consultations, coaching, and research. Through our social media (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest), numerous listservs, website and free newsletter, IRCA provides access to a wealth of free and practical tools that can be easily replicated and used across a variety of settings. As Indiana’s state legislated autism center, IRCA is committed to responding with accurate and timely information that addresses the needs of individuals across the autism spectrum and across the lifespan. For more information, visit our website at www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca Director: Cathy Pratt, Ph.D., BCBA-D, prattc@indiana.edu