This year I am the Case Manager for four 504 students. That means I keep track of student 504 meetings, reporting student needs to teachers, communicating with parents, and basically keeping up to date with what is going on academically with these students.
Here are some things to do when acting as a case manager for a student with a 504 plan.
1. Review their 504 plan. Note things like special alerts, the determining factor (the disability) for their 504 plan, Their program (classroom) accommodations and testing accommodations.
2. Make a cheat sheet for teachers that they can keep as a go to guide. Here is one that I created.
3. If they have testing accommodations, make sure they have a copy of the 504 plan in your school testing room. In our school we have a staff member who mans this room all day long to provide testing accommodations for students.
4. Know when the annual meeting date will be.
5. Set up any parent meeting that may be written into the 504 plan. Even though this is only our second day of school, we already had 2 parent-teacher conferences so parents could share with the teachers helpful tips about their children.
6. Be aware of any special services a student may receive–speech services, use of scribe, use of iPad, OT, PT, counseling, etc.
7. Keep in contact with parents. I am planning on reporting to parents every two weeks with a check in of how classes are going, upcoming assignments parents should be on the lookout for, questions or comments from the teachers that they would like to share, etc.
8. Keep non core teachers in the loop. For those teachers that are not a part of a team, but work with your students, make sure you distribute and gather info from them as well. For our school this includes our PE, health, and AIS teachers.
9. Check in periodically with your students. See how things are going. Ask them about their classes and how they think are doing. Don’t forget to review report card grades, as well as attendance and behavior reports if necessary.
10. Keep a folder for each student and keep copies of all notes and reports that you send or receive in case you need to refer back to them.
11. Enjoy being the case manager. This is an important role and you can have a significant impact on a student and their overall school progress. Keep positive about your assignment and positive things will happen.