Phoenix Union High School District is required by federal and state law (34 CFR 300.220.34 CFR 300.121) to conduct an annual “Child Find” effort as a means to locate, identify, and evaluate all resident children with disabilities, including children with disabilities attending private schools, regardless of the severity of their disabilities. The purpose of Child Find is to locate these children so that a free appropriate public education can be made available. Upon request, PUHSD will screen any resident child who has not graduated from high school to determine whether a special education referral is appropriate. The information from the screening is used to determine whether a child should be evaluated for a suspected disability. When the school staff reasonably believes a child is a child with a disability, they refer the child for evaluation by the school’s Multi-disciplinary Evaluation Team (MET).
Eligible students are entitled to a free and appropriate education, including specially designed individualized instruction for disabled students between the ages of 3 and 21. This law applies to EVERY eligible child, regardless of the severity of the disability and assures confidentiality procedures are followed.
If you suspect that your child has a disability (emotional, mental or physical) and does not receive Special Education services, contact the special education department at your local Phoenix Union High School or by writing to Vicki Heard, Director of Special Education, at 4502 N. Central Ave, Phoenix, AZ., 85012.
A physician, nurse, psychologist, social worker, or administrator of a social agency who reasonably believes a child brought to him or her for services is a child with a disability has a legal duty to report the child to the school district in which the child resides. Before referring the child, the person making the referral must inform the child's parent that the referral will be made. The referral must be in writing and include the reason why the person believes the child is a child with a disability. Others who reasonably believe a child is a child with a disability may also refer the child to the local PUHSD high school in which the child resides.
