Education Resources
Rincon Family Services offers a wide range of support to individuals and families across Chicagoland. Programs and services include counseling, case management, violence prevention, education, and substance use prevention and treatment services.
Rincon Family Services community programs also include:
- Rental assistance and eviction prevention
- Immigration integration
- A construction pre-apprenticeship program and more
For questions, please contact Rincon Family Services at rtinoco@rinconfamilyservices.org or (773) 564 -9070.
Safe2Help Illinois offers students a safe, confidential way to share information that might help prevent suicides, bullying, school violence or other threats to school safety. The program is focused on getting students to “Seek Help Before Harm.”
Recognizing that not all students may feel safe talking to their parents, teachers, coaches or mentors, students can use a free app, text/phone, website (Safe2HelpIllinois.com) and other social media platforms to confidentially report school safety issues and seek help before harming themselves or others.
The Safe2Help website provides guidance, tips and multi-media materials for children, teens, parents and educators on topics including:
- The role and actions of a trusted adult
- Ways to get help
- Encouraging others
- Helping someone online
- Suicide prevention
Sarah D. Culbertson Memorial Hospital Health Profession Scholarship Program
Sarah D. Culbertson Memorial Hospital (CMH) Foundation provides a variety of annual scholarship programs. Scholarships are available to high school seniors, college students, Connect Care participants, and CMH employees entering a healthcare-related field in high demand at CMH. The award amount may change from year to year. Information, applications and scholarship deadlines are available online.
Foundation scholarship opportunities include:
- The Elmer Hugh Taylor Health Profession Scholarship for high school seniors in Schuyler, Cass and South Fulton counties entering a healthcare-related field at CMH
- The Regina Ehrhardt Scholarship for a Rushville-Industry High School or Brown County High School senior who is entering a nursing-related field of study that is currently available at CMH
- The Career Connect Scholarship for any Rushville-Industry High School senior participating in Career Connect at CMH
- The Future of Culbertson Scholarship for potential future employees obtaining a secondary education in a healthcare-related field of study that is currently available at CMH
- The CMH Foundation Scholarship for full or part-time employees who are taking healthcare courses for a position that is considered a critical need at CMH
If you have any questions, please call the CMH Foundation office at (217) 322-5269.
School Help for Homeless Children with Disabilities: Information for Parents
The National Center for Homeless Education at SERVE (Supporting the Education of Children and Youth Experiencing Homelessness) provides this information for families experiencing homelessness who have children with special needs.
This brief discusses common concerns and offers resources for additional assistance.
Sertoma Organization for People Affected by Hearing Loss
Sertoma provides information and support to people at risk of or affected by hearing loss. National and local chapters across the United States support hearing health through a variety of programs and activities. Sertoma services include annual scholarships, access to amplified hearing devices, teen and college-level service programs, the “Adopt-an-Agency” program and more.
Sertoma offers two scholarship programs:
- The Scholarship for the Hard of Hearing or Deaf is open to students with clinically significant bilateral hearing loss. Graduating high school students or undergraduate students pursuing four-year college degrees in any discipline are eligible for the scholarship.
- The Communicative Disorders Scholarship is for graduate students pursuing advanced degrees in audiology or speech-language pathology from institutions in the United States. The program awards these scholarships in the spring to help offset the cost of tuition, books and fees incurred during the following school year.
See Sertoma’s website for eligibility requirements. The program accepts applications between Nov. 1 and March 31 each year.
Sertoma Star Services in Illinois
Sertoma Star Services (SRS) is a not-for-profit community organization dedicated to challenging the limits and changing the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and mental illness in the Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana areas. Services include vocational, educational, therapeutic, recreational and residential programs.
Sertoma Star Services programs include:
- Special recreation services for children, teens and adults
- Community living and home-based services
- Life skills enrichment program for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities
- Janitorial and e-recycling vocational training and long-term job opportunities for adults
For more information, contact Deanna Wetzel at intake@sertomastar.org or (708) 300-8527.
Special Education and Inclusion in Early Care and Education
The Illinois Early Learning (IEL) Project provides this Special Education and Inclusion in Early Care and Education resource list for early childhood special education and inclusive childcare for children ages 3 to 5 years old. The resources include tip sheets on choosing child care for infants and toddlers, choosing a preschool, inclusion in preschool classrooms and special education assessment for preschool-aged children.
If you have questions, please contact IEL online or call (877) 275-3227. EIL will try to reply to inquiries within one week.
Special Education Assessment Tip Sheet and Resource List
Family members and early care and education providers are adults who notice when the children in their care may have disabilities or developmental delays and would benefit from special education services.
The Illinois Early Learning (IEL) Project’s Special Education Assessment tip sheet series is a helpful tool for learning more about the steps in that process. The IEL also provides an Assessment for Special Education resource list.
For questions, please contact IEL online or call (877) 275-3227.
Equip for Equality has a toll-free Special Education Helpline to help families get appropriate education services for their children. The Helpline can assist by providing:
- Someone to talk to about your questions and concerns
- Information sheets on frequently asked questions
- Sample letters and forms
- Referrals
- Other assistance as needed
Contact the Helpline at 1-866-KIDS-046 (1-866-543-7046) or specialed@equipforequality.org.
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