About
Institute Overview
Founded in 1984, originally as a Washington State Institute, this regionally based conference on special education law serves educators and attorneys from sister states in the Pacific Northwest and attracts attendees from throughout the nation. Parents and parent advocates are also encouraged to attend.
The primary mission of the Institute is to keep practitioners aware of congressional amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and recent court cases interpreting the Act. Most faculty are nationally prominent acknowledged school or Plaintiff attorneys with active practices in IDEA litigation. The Institute also addresses Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, Sections 1983 and 1985 of the Civil Rights Act, No Child Left Behind Act, and other federal and state laws affecting the operation and management of special education programs in public schools.
The Institute consists of four general sessions and sixteen workshops over two days. The Institute is preceded by a full day of optional mini-courses providing formal instruction in various special education law topics.
This conference on Special Education and the Law is held annually in the fall. The 26th Pacific NW Institute on Special Education and the Law will be held October 5-7, 2009 at the Doubletree Hotel Seattle Airport in Seattle, Washington.
Institute Advisory Board
- Richard M. Wilson, Director, UW School Law Division, WA
- Constance Bull
- Paul Miller
- Jerry Painter
- Fred J. Poss
- Ilene Schwartz
- Pat Wasley
2009 Program Planning Committee
- Richard M. Wilson, Director, UW School Law Division, WA
- Mark Anderson, WA
- Richard P. Bartos, MT
- Daniel Bettis, WA
- Ed Born, WA
- Sherrie Brown, WA
- William L.E. Dussault, WA
- Elaine Eberharter-Maki, ID
- Suzy Harris, OR
- Graham M. Hicks, OR
- Marilyn Holm, WA
- Pamela McPartland, WA
- Christine L. Moore, OR
- Rosemary Sheffield, WA
- Denise Sillery, WA
- Diane Wiscarson, OR