Welcome to the (Lay) Special Education Curriculum Designed for Everyone!

With Ohio having over 250,000 students with disabilities receiving special education services in their school, many parents/families feel they receive a limited amount of support and may have questions and be unsure of the next steps.

If you are a parent or family member of a child with a disability, or desire to help families in your neighborhood, community, or school who are navigating the special education process for their child, we present a valuable series of free virtual trainings containing curriculum and supplemental materials to provide you with the information and skills to help you be a support.

Through the Family Empowerment project granted by the Ohio Developmental Disabilities council to the Ohio Coalition for the Education of Children with Disabilities (OCECD), Disability Rights Ohio (DRO) and the University of Cincinnati Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCCEDD), the virtual training curriculum you will participate in over the next few months will help you become a Champion, a volunteer who can make a difference to increase and improve the support and knowledge parents/families have during the special education process.
Image of Students

The curriculum

Champions are volunteers in their own community in the Columbus or Dayton area who are interested in learning and giving back to those of their community. This curriculum is not in place of legal advice, nor does it train individuals to be lawyers or advocates. Instead, participants will learn about the categories of information so they can support parents and families.

  • Topics in this curriculum include:

  • Family Empowerment/Advocacy when working with the Special Education team (available September 26, 2022)

  • Communication/Negotiation in the School Setting (coming soon)

  • Special Education Law in Ohio (coming soon)

  • Resources & Supports for Families (coming soon)

This virtual series curriculum will allow Champions to learn at their own pace, providing fundamental information to begin their journey of supporting others. When the series of curriculum is completed, the participant will be equipped to serve as a volunteer Champion in their own communities, supporting others through their experience.

The curriculum has basic, intermediate, and advance levels, allowing individuals with varying expertise to learn at their own pace. It also includes supplemental information at intermediate and advance levels. As individuals gain knowledge, they can interact with the materials that meet their needs.

To provide additional support to Champions, after completing the curriculum, Ohio Special Education Response Team (OSERT) meetings are offered each month to provide ongoing learning opportunities. Because a team approach to helping the family can bring positive ideas and solutions, there will also be opportunities to discuss challenging cases with staff from OCECD, DRO, and UCCEDD.

Enroll in Courses Today!

Each of the four topics in the curriculum will be posted to the website during the last week of the month, with notifications sent to participants. Today the first curriculum is now available to you along with the materials on this topic. Click below to move to the module page to begin the first curriculum training!

Get started now

Begin Your Journey as a Special Education Champion!