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1
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The provision of a free appropriate public
3 education (FAPE) for a student with hearing loss can only occur
4 with full communication access to education; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Full communication access depends upon a
6 language-rich environment that fosters age-appropriate
7 communication and language development, utilizes
8 language-proficient educational staff, and provides for direct
9 communication with staff and peers; and
 
10     WHEREAS, Children and youth who are deaf or hard of hearing
11 face unique and significant barriers related to language and
12 communication that profoundly affect most aspects of the
13 educational process; and
 
14     WHEREAS, Attending to a student's communication needs and
15 language development is a vital prerequisite for access to
16 educational opportunities that lead to literacy and academic
17 achievement; therefore, be it
 
18     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
19 NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
20 SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that there is created the Joint Task
21 Force on Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education Options, consisting

 

 

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1 of fifteen members appointed as follows: the Speaker of the
2 House of Representatives, Minority Leader of the House of
3 Representatives, President of the Senate, and Minority Leader
4 of the Senate shall each appoint one member; the following
5 entities shall each appoint one member: the Illinois Deaf and
6 Hard of Hearing Commission, the Illinois State Board of
7 Education, the Illinois Supervisors of Programs for
8 Individuals who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing, the Helen Keller
9 National Center, the Early Intervention System, the Hearing and
10 Vision Connections, the Illinois School for the Deaf, the
11 Illinois Hands and Voices parent organization, and the Newborn
12 Hearing Screening Program; the Deaf Education Program in
13 Illinois at MacMurray College and the Illinois State University
14 shall each appoint one member; and be it further
 
15     RESOLVED, That all members of the Task Force shall serve
16 without compensation; and be it further
 
17     RESOLVED, That all members of the Communication Options
18 Committee established by the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
19 Commission with the collaboration of the State Board of
20 Education shall continue in their representation on the Joint
21 Task Force on Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education Options; and
22 be it further
 
23     RESOLVED, That the Task Force can appoint members as it

 

 

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1 sees fit to serve as representatives of the deaf and hard of
2 hearing population of Illinois or parents of children with
3 hearing loss representing each of the following communication
4 options: Oral/aural, Cued Speech, Total Communication, and
5 American Sign Language; and be it further
 
6     RESOLVED, That the duty of the Task Force is to undertake a
7 comprehensive and thorough review of education and services
8 available to the deaf or hard of hearing children in Illinois
9 with the intent of making recommendations that would recognize
10 communication as fundamental to a deaf or hard of hearing
11 child's most basic of needs; ensure communication-driven
12 service delivery of the early intervention system and the
13 public education system with programs and services addressing
14 the unique communication needs of each child through
15 communication assessment, development, and access; establish
16 uniform methods and procedures within the early intervention
17 system and the public education system that shall be non-biased
18 and well-informed when sharing information with children and
19 their families on the available communication options and
20 community resource awareness; and be it further
 
21     RESOLVED, That the Task Force, working with the Illinois
22 Deaf and Hard of Hearing Commission, the Illinois State Board
23 of Education, the Early Intervention System, the Illinois
24 School for the Deaf, and the Newborn Hearing Screening Program,

 

 

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1 shall assist those entities in developing interagency
2 agreements and programs and procedures regarding universal,
3 early identification of hearing loss and effective interface
4 between medical and educational services; and be it further
 
5     RESOLVED, That the Task Force may request assistance from
6 any entity necessary or useful for the performance of its
7 duties; and be it further
 
8     RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall issue a report with its
9 recommendations to the General Assembly on or before December
10 31, 2007.