Education of the Handicapped Act Amendments of 1990

Education of the Handicapped Act Amendments of 1990 - Title I: General Provisions - Amends the Education of the Handicapped Act (the Act) to reauthorize funding and to change references to handicapped individuals or children to references to individuals or children with disabilities.

Extends coverage of children with disabilities to include those with autism or traumatic brain injury.

Redefines "special education" to include instruction conducted in the home, in hospitals and institutions, and in other settings, and instruction in physical education (as well as instruction conducted in the classroom).

Redefines "related services" to include therapeutic recreation, social work services, and rehabilitation counseling.

Defines "transition services," and requires that the individualized education program (IEP) include a statement of needed transition services for students beginning no later than age 16 and annually thereafter (and when determined appropriate for the individual, beginning at age 14 or younger), including, when appropriate, a statement of interagency responsibilities or linkages before the student leaves the school setting. Requires the educational agency, in any case where any other participating agency fails to provide agreed upon services, to reconvene the IEP team to identify alternative strategies to meet the transition objectives.

Includes the Bureau of Indian Affairs when it acts on behalf of schools it operates on Indian reservations, and tribally controlled schools funded by the Department of the Interior, under the definition of public or nonprofit private agency or organization.

Sets forth definitions of assistive technology devices and services.

Defines "underrepresented" to include populations such as minorities, the poor, the limited English proficient, and individuals with disabilities.

Directs the Secretary of Education (the Secretary), within 30 days after the enactment of this Act, to publish a Notice of Inquiry in the Federal Register to solicit public comments on the appropriate components of an operational definition of "attention disorder deficit." Directs the Secretary, within 30 days after the close of the comment period, to transmit the public comments to specified congressional committees.

Provides for an abrogation of State immunity to suits in Federal court for violations of the Act.

Directs the Secretary to: (1) maintain a program planning process for the implementation of specified discretionary grant programs and of the evaluation and program information provisions of the Act; (2) require applicants for grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements under such discretionary programs, where appropriate to demonstrate how they will address the needs of infants, toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities from minority backgrounds; (3) require such applicants, where appropriate and at the Secretary's discretion, to address the various transitions that children with disabilities may face throughout their years in school; (4) conduct independent evaluations of such programs and provisions; (5) report such program plans and evaluation findings to the Congress; (6) develop procedures for acquiring and disseminating information derived from such programs; (7) require grant and contract recipients to prepare reports in a form that will maximize dissemination of relevant information; (8) convene panels of experts to evaluate proposals and applications; and (9) conduct at least one site visit for each grant, contract, and cooperative agreements receiving $300,000 or more annually under such discretionary programs.

Sets forth certain goals and priorities for involving minorities and underrepresented persons in the specified discretionary grant programs. Directs the Secretary to develop a plan to provide outreach services to increase the participation of the following entities in competitions for grants and contracts under such programs: (1) historically Black colleges and universities and other higher education institutions whose minority student enrollment is at least 25 percent; (2) institutions of higher education which enroll certain percentages of specified minority or needy students; (3) nonprofit and for-profit agencies at least 51 percent owned or controlled by one or more minority individuals; and (4) underrepresented populations. Requires the Secretary to: (1) expend one percent of funds for such programs in each of FY 1991 through 1994 to implement such plan; and (2) report annually to the Congress on progress toward increasing minority participation in such programs.

Title II: Assistance for Education of All Handicapped Individuals - Amends title II (Assistance for Education of All Handicapped Children) of the Act to include assistance for the education of handicapped children on reservations for whom services were provided through contract with an Indian tribe or organization prior to FY 1989. Requires the Secretary of the Interior to submit to the appropriate congressional committees a plan for services to all handicapped children residing on reservations, regardless of whether a reservation is served by a school funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA).

Revises State plan requirements for description of a comprehensive system of personnel development. Requires State plans to describe procedures and activities the State will undertake to ensure both an adequate supply of qualified special education and related services personnel and the appropriate and adequate preparation of such necessary personnel, including: (1) a system for annual determination of specified types and numbers of employed personnel and of personnel needed for next five years; (2) a system for annual determination of numbers of enrolled students in, and of certified or licensed graduates from, preparatory programs at institutions of higher education in the State; (3) a plan to address current and projected personnel needs and to coordinate and facilitate efforts to recruit, prepare, and retain qualified personnel, including those from minority backgrounds and with disabilities; (4) a system for continuing education of regular and special education and related services personnel; (5) procedures to acquire and disseminate significant knowledge from education research and other sources to teachers, administrators, and related services personnel; and (6) procedures for adopting appropriate and promising practices, materials, and technology.

Revises provisions for evaluation and program information, including those for data collection, annual reports, special studies, and technical assistance. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1991 through 1994.

Title III: Centers and Services to Meet Special Needs of Handicapped Individuals - Requires the Regional Resource Centers to focus on special education, related services, and early intervention. Requires that training by such centers to and through State educational agencies be only as requested.

Authorizes specified activities for the coordinating technical assistance center.

Directs the Secretary to develop guidelines and criteria for operation of Regional and Federal Resource Centers, by: (1) establishing a panel representing Office of Special Education Programs staff, State special education directors, representatives of disability advocates; and (2) when appropriate, consulting with the regional resource center directors. Requires the proposed guidelines to be published for review and comment.

Revises services for deaf-blind children and youth to add: (1) local educational agencies (LEAs) and designated lead agencies to the list of entities to be assisted in providing such services; (2) infants and toddlers to those served; (3) early intervention to such services; (4) supports to facilitate transitional services for deaf-blind youth, including assistance related to independent living and competitive employment; (5) pilot projects to expand LEA supplementary services for deaf-blind children and youth and to encourage eventual assumption of funding responsibility by State and local authorities; and (6) development, improvement, or demonstration of methods, approaches, or techniques that contribute to the adjustment and education of deaf-blind children and youth. Modifies and expands age eligibility requirements for technical assistance. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into grants or cooperative agreements to establish and support single and multistate centers for program development and expansion through technical assistance and pilot supplementary services for such children and youth and their families. Includes among data to be reported gender, service settings, and student outcomes, where appropriate. Directs the Secretary to make a grant, contract, or coooperative agreement for a national clearinghouse for information on children and youth with deaf-blindness, emphasizing information on effective practices for working with such children and youth. Repeals certain provisions relating to extended school year programs and joint projects.

Authorizes grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements for: (1) research to identify and meet the full range of special needs of deaf-blind children and youth; and (2) development and demonstration of new or improved methods to aid the adjustment and education of such children and youth.

Revises provisions for early education for children with disabilities to provide for involvement of parents and adult role models with disabilities. Requires the technical assistance development system to provide assistance to parents of and advocates for infants, toddlers, and children with disabilities, as well as direct service and administrative personnel involved with such children. Revises provisions for information dissemination through networks and for referral sources. Allows research projects and training projects to include programs to integrate children with disabilities into regular preschool programs. Revises such early education programs to authorize projects for: (1) early identification of infants and toddlers with disabilities; (2) transition of infants with disabilities from medical care to early intervention and then to preschool education; (3) assistive technology devices and services; (4) early intervention and preschool needs of children exposed prenatally to maternal substance abuse; and (5) synthesis and preparation for dissemination of early education knowledge.

Revises programs for infants, toddlers, children, and youth with severe disabilities. Includes among authorized uses of program funds: (1) student transportation to and from school; (2) training of regular educators in strategies that include integrated settings for educating such children alongside their nondisabled peers; (3) use of existing information dissemination networks; (4) statewide projects to improve education of and services to such children and youth and to change to integrated environments; and (5) extended school year demonstration programs for infants, toddlers, children, and youth with severe disabilities. Directs the Secretary to give priority to programs that increase the likelihood such children and youth will be educated with their nondisabled peers.

Revises provisions for postsecondary education to allow model programs to include joint projects that coordinate with special education and transition services. Includes under functions of certain regional centers and model programs outreach activities, including technical assistance for model programs adapted to the special needs of individuals with disabilities. Increases the minimum funding level for the four regional postsecondary centers for the deaf.

Revises secondary education and transitional services for youth with disabilities to include assistance for transition to independent and community living. Authorizes projects for developing and disseminating programs for assistive technology and services for students with disabilities as they make the transition from secondary school. Directs the Secretary to make one-time, five-year grants, on a competitive basis, to States in which the State agencies for education and for vocational rehabilitation apply jointly to develop, implement, and improve systems for transition services for youth with disabilities from age 14 through the age they exit school. Provides for separate evaluation of such grants program. Requires information dissemination through the use of existing networks. Directs the Secretary to fund one or more demonstration models designed to establish appropriate methods of providing assistive technology devices and services to secondary school students making the transition to vocational rehabilitation, employment, postsecondary education, or adult services. Provides for separate evaluation of such demonstration projects. Requires coordination of such secondary education and transition services programs with projects under the Job Training Partnership Act and the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act.

Establishes new programs for children and youth with serious emotional disturbance. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to and contracts and cooperative agreements with various entities for projects to improve special education and related services to such children and youth, including research and demonstration of innovative approaches. Authorizes the Secretary to make competitive grants to local educational agencies in collaboration with mental health entities for demonstration projects to provide services for such children and youth. Allows the use of such demonstration project funds also to facilitate interagency and private sector resource pooling to improve services for such children and youth, and to provide information and training for those involved with them.

Authorizes appropriations for FY 1991 through 1994 for the following programs under part C (Centers and Services to Meet Special Needs of Individuals with Disabilities): (1) Regional Resource and Federal Centers; (2) services for deaf-blind children and youth; (3) early education for children with disabilities; (4) programs for children with severe disabilities; (5) postsecondary education; (6) secondary education and transitional services for youth with disabilities; (7) grants to State agencies for joint programs for transition services; and (8) programs for children and youth with serious emotional disturbances.

Title IV: Training Personnel for the Education of Handicapped Individuals - Revises provisions for grants, including scholarships, for personnel training to include training for careers in: (1) related services to children and youth with disabilities in educational and other settings; (2) instructional and assistive technology services; (3) special education and other careers in preschool and early intervention for infants and toddlers with disabilities; and (4) special education leadership. Includes among factors on which such grant awards are made the need for personnel in special education for children of limited English proficiency. Requires grant applications to include detailed descriptions of strategies that will be used to recruit and train members of minority groups and persons with disabilities. Requires institutions receiving such grants to give priority consideration for fellowships and traineeships to individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, including minorities and individuals with disabilities who are underrepresented in teaching or in their specializations.

Authorizes the Secretary to determine that a portion of training supported through such grants shall be: (1) conducted on an interdisciplinary basis; and (2) designed to assist special educators in properly coordinating service provision with related service personnel. Requires certain training programs to require, to the extent feasible, practices to demonstrate the delivery of related services in an array of regular and special education and community settings.

Allows regular or special education personnel to participate in such training on a preservice or inservice basis.

Directs the Secretary to make such personnel training grants, which include scholarships, to historically Black colleges and universities, and other institutions of higher education whose minority student enrollment is at least 25 percent.

Revises provisions for demonstration grants for personnel training to require that both preservice and inservice training include a component addressing coordination among all service providers, including regular educators.

Requires parent training and information centers to have minority parents and minority professionals on their boards of directors. Adds networking and reporting requirements for such centers and programs. Directs the Secretary, after the establishment in each State of such a center, to provide for establishment of three new experimental parent training and information centers to serve large numbers of parents of children with disabilities located in high density areas that do not have such centers, and two such centers to serve large numbers of such parents in rural areas. Directs the Secretary to obtain and report on specified data relating to such programs and centers. Includes parents of infants and toddlers (as well as children and youth) with disabilities under such parent training and information provisions.

Allows certain grants to State educational agencies and institutions for traineeships to be used also to assist the State to develop and maintain its comprehensive system of personnel development and to conduct recruitment and retention activities.

Revises provisions for clearinghouses to require reporting of numbers of individuals served, listing of new products developed and disseminated, and description of responses and of strategies and activities used for outreach to areas with populations of minorities and underrepresented and underserved groups.

Revises provisions for reports to the Secretary to require inclusion of additional information from parent training and information centers and from clearinghouses.

Authorizes appropriations for FY 1991 through 1994 for various programs under part D of the Act (Training Personnel for the Education of Individuals with Disabilities).

Title V: Research in Education of Individuals with Disabilities - Revises provisions for research and related activities and demonstration projects for the improvement of instruction and learning of children with disabilities. Authorizes various research projects in special education, program management, administration, and delivery of special education, early intervention, and related services. Establishes a program for model demonstration projects, some of them school-based, to provide ombudsman services to help resolve problems that are barriers to receipt of services for children and youth with disabilities.

Includes therapeutic recreation within the definition of recreation for children with disabilities, for purposes of research and demonstration projects in physical education and recreation for children with disabilities.

Authorizes appropriations for FY 1991 through 1994 to carry out part E of the Act (Research in the Education of Individuals with Disabilities).

Title VI: Instructional Media for Individuals with Disabilities - Revises provisions for instructional media for individuals with disabilities to refer to television, literacy, hard of hearing, and visually impaired individuals. Provides for the loaning of descriptive video materials.

Authorizes grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements with other appropriate nonprofit organizations (as well as the National Theatre of the Deaf, Inc.) to: (1) provide cultural (as well as theatrical) experiences for hard of hearing (as well as deaf) children and adults; and (2) promote integration of hearing, deaf, and hard of hearing individuals in shared educational and social (as well as cultural) experiences.

Authorizes the Secretary to make a grant or contract to provide current, free textbooks and other educational publications and materials to blind and other print-handicapped students through transcribed tapes and cassettes.

Authorizes appropriations for FY 1991 through 1994 to carry out part F of the Act (Instructional Media for Individuals with Disabilities).

Title VII: Technology, Educational Media, and Materials for Individuals with Disabilities - Revises provisions for financial assistance for technology, educational media, and materials for individuals with disabilities to refer to assistive technology, related services, and literacy.

Provides for technology, educational media, and materials for projects that increase access to and use of assistive technology devices and services in the education of infants, toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities, and in other related activities authorized by the Technology-Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities Act of 1988.

Directs the Secretary to ensure closed-captioning of the instructional materials used with such funds. Prohibits awarding of specified grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements unless the applicant agrees that the assisted activities will be appropriately coordinated with the State entity receiving funds under certain provisions of the Technology-Related Assistance Act.

Authorizes appropriations for FY 1991 through 1994 to carry out part G of the Act (Technology, Educational Media, and Materials for Individuals with Disabilities).

Title VIII: Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities - Includes social work services within the definition of early intervention services for infants and toddlers with disabilities.

Revises requirements for a statewide system to include: (1) preparation and dissemination, by the lead agency to all primary referral sources, of information materials for families on the availability of early intervention services; (2) training of primary referral sources with respect to the basic components of early intervention services available in the State; and (3) procedures for determining the extent to which primary referral sources, especially hospitals and physicians, disseminate information on the availability of early intervention services to parents of infants with disabilities.

Title IX: Technical Amendments - Retitles the Act as the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act. Changes all references to handicapped infants, toddlers, children, and youth to infants, toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities.

Title X: General Provisions - Sets forth the effective date of this Act.