If you're new to the world of Special Education, we recommend starting on our Identifying Your Student's Needs page.
Resource Program
Students served in the resource program are provided individualized instruction and intervention to support the whole child including academics, behavior, communication, social, emotional, adaptive, sensory and physical needs in the least restrictive environment. Our purpose is to provide students with access to general education and grade level standards.
Related Services
Related services are determined by evaluation data and information gathered by the Individualized Education Plan (IEP). These services are provided to help students access the general curriculum. Individual service providers serve a variety of schools within Academy District 20. Related services include speech, occupational therapy, physical therapy, vision, deaf and hard of hearing, and mental health.
Preschool
Preschool introduces children to the structure, routine and focus of school. Students also build cognitive, social, emotional and language skills. Preschool gives children, ages three to five (if not yet eligible for kindergarten), and introduction to learning as teachers guide them through play-based programming. Our classes are integrated. Children with developmental delays benefit from typical models that encourage language, cognition and social development. Visit our Preschool page for additional information.
Child Find Program
We make sure that young learners having difficulties or delays in development get the help they need to be successful in school. Our child find system helps identify children suspected of having a significant delay in development. The process may begin with a developmental screening and when appropriate, a multidisciplinary evaluation to determine eligibility for preschool through special education. Find out more on our page, Identifying Your Student's Needs - Child Find.
Center Based Programs
Center Based programs are specialized classrooms located in many neighborhood schools across the district. These programs provide an intensive level of support based on the individual needs of the student and access to additional resources and support. Students in center based programs can demonstrate deficits in academics, behavior, communication, social, emotional, and/or independence that are impacting their access to general education. These students are unable to get their needs met within the neighborhood school setting alone. The process for a center based program is data driven, an IEP team decision, and the district's Special Education Department must be included in the decision to change a student's placement. Our Center Based Programs are:
Affective Needs (AN)
Affective Needs (AN) Programs serve students with social, emotional, or behavioral needs who require specialized programming based on their unique needs. In AN programs, we focus on building relationships in a safe and consistent environment within an academic setting. Students who come to AN programs have frequently had behavior challenges in their previous setting, and require more structure and time to build school-ready behaviors. Available at these D20 schools:
Academy Endeavour Elementary School
Foothills Elementary School
Frontier Elementary School
Eagleview Middle School
Timberview Middle School
Air Academy High School
Liberty High School
Pine Creek High School
Significant Support Needs (SSN)
Significant Support Needs (SSN) programs serve students who have cognitive, developmental, physical or orthopedic disabilities, including Traumatic Brain Injuries. Rigorous instruction and programming is designed to address individualized needs to maximize potential including increased communication and independence for further education, employment, and independent living. Instruction is guided by district-approved curriculum and the state modified standards. Available at these D20 schools:
Chinook Trail Elementary School
Legacy Peak Elementary School
Discovery Canyon Campus Elementary School
Pioneer Elementary School
Edith Wolford Elementary School
Prairie Hills Elementary School
Explorer Elementary School
Woodmen-Roberts Elementary School
High Plains Elementary School
All Middle and High Schools
Communication Social Development (CSD)
Communication Social Development (CSD) programs support students identified with Autism Spectrum Disorder who require specialized programming based on their unique needs. Students who come to CSD programs demonstrate significant deficits in functional communication, social skills and/or restrictive interests/repetitive behaviors that are impacting their access to general education and are unable to get their needs met within the neighborhood school alone. Available at these D20 schools:
Academy International Elementary School
Mountain View Elementary School
Ranch Creek Elementary School
Rockrimmon Elementary School
The da Vinci Academy
Eagleview Middle School
Discovery Canyon Campus Middle School
Bridges Program
The Bridges Transition Program is Academy School District 20’s program designed to support students with disabilities as they transition from high school to the adult world. This dynamic partnership engages young adults, families, staff, community agencies, and the broader community through shared participation and responsibility. The program provides individualized services tailored to each student’s needs—determined through the IEP process—until the semester in which they turn 21. These flexible and varied supports connect students and parents with opportunities that promote skill development, self-advocacy, and independence. To learn more, please visit the Bridges Program page.
Aspire Learning Academy
Aspire Learning Academy serves students who require special education and related services outside of their traditional neighborhood school. This specialized program is designed for students with social, emotional, behavioral, academic, communication, or cognitive challenges and provides a highly structured, small-group learning environment tailored to individual needs. With an emphasis on strong teacher-student relationships, Aspire delivers intensive, individualized interventions that support student growth and success.