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North Tonawanda City School District

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Acronyms - Commonly used Disability and Special Education Acronyms

There are many new/old acronyms used. For your information, the following are most commonly used:

  • AAC - Alternative Augmentative Communication
  • ABA - Applied Behavioral Analysis
  • ADA - Americans with Disabilities Act
  • ADD - Attention Deficit Disorder
  • ADHD - Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
  • ADLs - Activities of Daily Living
  • AIS - Academic Intervention Services
  • APE - Adaptive Physical Education
  • ASL - American Sign Language
  • AR - Annual Review
  • AT - Assistive Technology
  • AU - Autism
  • AYP - Adequate Yearly Progress
  • BIP - Behavioral Intervention Program/Plan
  • BOE - Board of Education
  • CA - Chronological Age
  • CAPD - Central Auditory Processing Disorder
  • CC - Closed Captioning
  • CEC - Council for Exceptional Children
  • CF - Cystic Fibrosis
  • CP - Cerebral Palsy
  • CPSE - Committee on Preschool Special Education
  • CSE - Committee on Special Education
  • DB - Deaf-Blind
  • DS - Down Syndrome
  • ED - Emotional Disability
  • EI - Early Intervention
  • ELL - English Language Leaner
  • ESL - English as a Second Language
  • ESY - Extended School Year
  • FAPE - Free Appropriate Public Education
  • FAS - Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
  • FBA - Functional Behavioral Assessment
  • FERPA - Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
  • FOIA - Freedom of Information Art
  • GE - General Education
  • HI - Hearing Impairment
  • HOH - Hard of Hearing
  • ID - Intellectual Disabilities
  • IDEA - Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
  • IEE - Independent Educational Evaluation
  • IEP - Individualized Education Program
  • IESP - Individualized Education Service Plan
  • IHO - Impartial Hearing Officer
  • LD - Learning Disability
  • LEA - Local Education Agency
  • LEP - Limited English Proficiency
  • LOTE - Language Other Than English
  • LRE - Least Restrictive Environment
  • MDR - Manifestation Determination Review
  • MD - Multiple Disabilities
  • MTSS - Multi-Tiered System of Supports
  • OCD - Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
  • OCR - Office for Civil Rights
  • ODD - Oppositional Defiance Disorder
  • OHI - Other Health Impairment
  • OI - Orthopedic Impairment
  • O & M - Orientation & Mobility
  • OT - Occupational Therapy
  • PBS - Positive Behavioral Supports
  • PCA - Personal Care Aide
  • PD - Physical Disability
  • PDD - Pervasive Development Disability
  • PLEP - Present Level of Educational Performance
  • PP - Paraprofessional
  • PT - Physical Therapy
  • RS - Related Services
  • RTI - Response to Intervention
  • SE - Special Education
  • SED - State Education Department
  • SI - Sensory Integration
  • SLI - Speech/Language Impairment
  • SLP - Speech/Language Pathologist
  • TBI - Traumatic Brain Injury
  • TDD - Telecommunication Devices for the Deaf
  • TTy - Teletypewriter (phone system for individuals with deafness)
  • VI - Visual Impairment
  • Voc ED - Vocational Education