SCS CSHB 111(EDC): "An Act relating to public school students who are deaf or hard of hearing."
00 SENATE CS FOR CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 111(EDC) 01 "An Act relating to public school students who are deaf or hard of hearing." 02 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 03 * Section 1. AS 14.30.272 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 04 (c) A school district shall, in collaboration with the department and to the 05 maximum extent possible, 06 (1) provide a parent of a child who is deaf or hard of hearing, or who 07 the school district suspects may be deaf or hard of hearing, with comprehensive, 08 neutral, and unbiased information regarding 09 (A) hearing technology, including hearing aids, bone-anchored 10 hearing aids, cochlear implants, and remote microphone systems; 11 (B) different methods of communication for a child who is deaf 12 or hard of hearing, including listening and spoken language, a bilingual 13 approach, cued speech, and total communication; 14 (C) services and programs that are designed to meet the needs 15 of children who are deaf or hard of hearing; and
01 (D) support and advocacy services offered by public and 02 private agencies and other entities knowledgeable about the needs of children 03 who are deaf or hard of hearing; 04 (2) allow the parent of a child who is deaf or hard of hearing, or who 05 the school district suspects may be deaf or hard of hearing, to choose the method of 06 communication that the parent determines is most appropriate for the child and 07 provide services using the parent's chosen method of communication for the child; and 08 (3) deliver services to a child who is deaf or hard of hearing, or who 09 the school district suspects may be deaf or hard of hearing, through professionals with 10 training, experience, and a background in the chosen method of communication. 11 (d) A school district shall inform a parent of a child who is deaf or hard of 12 hearing, or who the school district suspects may be deaf or hard of hearing, of the 13 school district's duties and of the parent's rights provided under (c) of this section. 14 (e) In this section, 15 (1) "bilingual approach" means the development of both sign language 16 and English language literacy skills as a child's mode of receptive and expressive 17 communication; 18 (2) "cued speech" means a visual communication system that uses 19 hand shapes and placements in combination with the mouth movements of speech to 20 identify the phonemes of spoken language that look similar to one another; 21 (3) "deaf" means possessing hearing levels that, with or without 22 hearing technology, substantially affect a child's ability to understand spoken 23 language; 24 (4) "hard of hearing" means possessing hearing levels that, with or 25 without hearing technology, affect a child's ability to understand spoken language; 26 (5) "listening and spoken language" means communication that 27 focuses on maximizing listening through the use of hearing technologies, professional 28 intervention, and family involvement and support to facilitate the acquisition and 29 development of the spoken language of the child's home and community; 30 (6) "total communication" means the combined use of signs, speech, 31 speech-reading, auditory training, visual aids, manual gestures, and writing to convey
01 information. 02 * Sec. 2. AS 14.30.276 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 03 (b) The department shall support one or more programs for the deaf to be 04 made available to deaf students in the state. The program may provide residential 05 services as part of its educational program in consultation and collaboration with a 06 nongovernmental organization that provides services to people who are deaf and hard 07 of hearing. If a school district operates a program, the school district shall annually 08 submit a plan of operations to the department for approval and shall perform all duties 09 of a local school district related to special education under state and federal law, 10 except that the school district is only required to offer transportation to students who 11 reside in the district. If a school district determines that placement at the program is 12 appropriate for a child who resides in the district, the school district that makes the 13 placement retains the school district's responsibilities for special education for that 14 child under state and federal law.