DURHAM, N.H. - The National Center on Inclusive Education (NCIE), a project of the University of New Hampshire's Institute on Disability, will present Special Education Finance: A Conference on the Costs and Benefits of Inclusive Education on Thursday, March 31, 2011 at the Grappone Conference Center in Concord.

This conference, timely given the current fiscal challenges in our education system, is designed to both inform and create a forum where superintendents, principals, special education administrators, school board members, legislators, parents, and state agency leaders can engage in critical discussions about how fiscal policies and practices support effective and fiscally responsible inclusive education. 

Keynote presenter Thomas Parrish, Ed.D., presenting via video conference, will discuss data and policies on including students with disabilities in general education classrooms, comparing New Hampshire to other states. Parrish also will present data on the relationships between student placement, spending on special education, local school practices, and student performance.

Special Education Finance: A Conference on the Costs and Benefits of Inclusive Education
Date: March 31, 2011
Time: 11am - 4pm
Location: Grappone Conference Center, 70 Constitution Avenue, Concord
Registration Fee: $75, includes lunch and materials
Conference Presenter: Thomas Parrish (via video conference)
Conference Details and Online Registration: www.iod.unh.edu

Thomas Parrish serves as the deputy director of the Education and Human Development Program at the American Institutes for Research. He also serves as the director of the Center for Special Education Finance that is funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. Parrish combines expertise in education research and project management with direct experience as an educator. In addition to more than 25 years of experience leading and participating in a variety of educational policy studies, he spent five years teaching students with learning difficulties from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Education cost analysis and finance are areas of specialization for Parrish, who has a broad range of experience directing and providing leadership for projects in this area.

This one-day conference is part of the 2010-2011 Research to Practice Series in Inclusive Education presented by the NCIE in collaboration with the N.H. Department of Education, N.H. Association of Special Education Administrators, N.H. School Administrators Association, and N.H. Principals Association. For more information, visit www.iod.unh.edu.

The Institute on Disability at the University of New Hampshire was established in 1987 to provide a coherent university-based focus for the improvement of knowledge, policies, and practices related to the lives of persons with disabilities and their families. Its mission is to strengthen communities to ensure full access, equal opportunities, and participation for all persons.

The University of New Hampshire, founded in 1866, is a world-class public research university with the feel of a New England liberal arts college. A land, sea, and space-grant university, UNH is the state's flagship public institution, enrolling 12,200 undergraduate and 2,300 graduate students.

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