Special Services
Special Services
Embedded Files
Welcome to the East Peoria Community High School Special Services Department! We are committed to supporting every student's success by providing high-quality special education services in a welcoming and inclusive learning environment.
East Peoria Community High School District 309 provides a free and appropriate public education to students with disabilities in accordance with all applicable state and federal laws. Our dedicated team works collaboratively with students, families, educators, and community partners to ensure each student receives the individualized support and services they need to achieve their full potential.
Special Services and Support
Special Services and Support
Welcome! Let’s Support Your Student Together
At East Peoria High School, we believe every student deserves a learning environment where they can truly thrive. We know that the best outcomes happen when families and school teams work hand-in-hand. Whether your child needs a little extra help or a specialized learning plan, we are here to walk alongside you every step of the way.
Exploring Support Options
To help us find the right resources for your student, our team follows guidelines set by the state of Illinois. Together, we look at how a physical or mental disability might affect your child's daily school experience.
The state recognizes several qualifying categories:
Autism & Traumatic Brain Injury
Speech/Language & Hearing Impairments (including Deafness)
Visual Impairments (including Deaf-Blindness)
Learning & Intellectual Disabilities
Orthopedic & Other Health Impairments
Emotional Disturbances & Multiple Disabilities
How We Determine Eligibility:
A medical diagnosis is just the first chapter of the story. To qualify for specific special education services, our team meets to answer two main questions:
Does the disability adversely impact your student's school progress?
Do they need specially designed instruction to succeed?
Because these state and federal rules are very specific, not every student with a disability will qualify for special education. If that is the case for your child, please don't worry—our goal is always to collaborate with you to find the right level of support for their unique needs.
Designing a Plan as a Team
When a student qualifies for support, we bring everyone to the table. You are a vital part of this team! Together with parents, general education teachers, and specialized staff, we build a personalized roadmap. We meet at least once a year—or whenever you feel a review is needed—to make sure the plan is still working beautifully.
East Peoria High School offers a full continuum of care through two primary paths:
Individualized Education Programs (IEP): Created under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) for students who need specialized, tailored instruction.
Section 504 Plans: Created under the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973. This option provides helpful accommodations for students with a physical or mental impairment that limits a major life activity, even if they don't require specialized instruction.
Special Education and Related Services
Special Education and Related Services
Supporting Your Student’s Unique Journey
At East Peoria High School, our dedicated teams work alongside you to bring your student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) to life. Every service, support, and goals-based instruction plan is built by the IEP team to celebrate and meet your child's unique educational needs.
Understanding Related Services
Sometimes, a student needs extra support to fully benefit from their special education plan. These are called related services, and they are carefully chosen based on your child's specific educational goals.
Our district offers a wide variety of these supportive services, including:
Therapy & Communication: Speech/language therapy, occupational therapy, and physical therapy
Social & Emotional Wellbeing: Social work and psychological services
Access & Independence: Adaptive physical education, assistive technology, and specialized transportation
Please note: School-based related services are designed specifically to support your student’s learning environment, which means their eligibility and focus may look a bit different than private medical therapies.
Transparency and Service Logs
We keep careful track of the type and number of minutes of related services your student receives. We want you to feel fully informed about your child's day, so we make these service logs available to you automatically at your student's annual IEP review meeting.
You are also welcome to request a copy of these logs at any time. Simply reach out to our Director of Special Services, and we will gladly share them with you.
Our Continuum of Care: Finding the Perfect Fit
We believe in providing a full spectrum of options so every student can learn in the environment that suits them best. Your student’s IEP team will carefully design a plan tailored just for them.
Our placement options span a wide range, ensuring flexibility:
General Education Classrooms: Learning alongside peers with built-in supports.
Specialized Classrooms: Located right here in our district, offering smaller student-to-teacher ratios, higher service intensity, and focused teaching methods.
Individualized Settings: Tailored environments that can extend all the way to residential settings if highly specialized care is needed.
The vast majority of our students thrive and receive their services right here within the main East Peoria High School community.
Your Rights and What to Expect next
We value clear communication and want to ensure you always feel informed and empowered:
Prompt Paperwork: Within three days of your student’s IEP meeting, we will email you the draft paperwork for your review. We intentionally leave out decisions regarding final eligibility or educational placement because those are vital choices we must make together as a team during our meeting.
Delivery Choices: If you prefer to receive paper copies of your documents in the mail, just let our Special Education Office know at (309) 694-8319.
Open Records: You have the right to review your student’s school records at any time.
Service Commitments: If for any reason an agreed-upon IEP service cannot be started within 10 school days of its planned start date, we will notify you immediately.
Section 504 Plans
Section 504 Plans
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act is a federal law designed to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities in programs and activities that receive federal funding from the U.S. Department of Education. East Peoria District 309 provides a free and appropriate education for students who are eligible for a 504 plan by individually designing accommodations/modifications and or services to meet their educational needs in the same manner as their non-disabled peers. It is important to note that students with a section 504 plan are considered general education students.
In order to be eligible for services under a section 504 plan, a student must have a mental or physical impairment that substantially limits one or more major life functions. A mental or physical disability includes but is not limited to: ADHD, anxiety, allergies, asthma, blind, deaf, autism, diabetes, dyslexia, cerebral palsy, hearing impairment, visual impairment, depression, bipolar, HIV/AIDS, learning disability, or an emotional disability. A major life function includes but is not limited to: caring for self, performing manual tasks, seeing, hearing, eating, sleeping, walking, standing, lifting, bending, speaking, learning, reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating, working, body functioning.
A team of individuals that have knowledge of the student develops a written plan that identifies the accommodations/modifications and services a student needs to access the general education.
Section 504 legal information below:
https://www.isbe.net/Pages/Special-Education-Civil-Rights.aspx
All Special Education and 504 records will be disposed of five years after the student graduates from high school or leaves the school district. Notices are placed on the school website and newspaper publications. Records can be requested by the student at that time.
The District is not responsible for the content and accessibility of external websites linked onto the District’s website. External websites are the sole property of such websites and, as such, the content and accessibility of external websites are the sole responsibility of the entity or entities in control of the content and administration of such website.
Special Education Resources
Special Education Resources
Special Education Referral Process
Restricted Time Out Reduction Plan.
Special Education Behavior Policy and Procedures
Amanda Rutledge and Laura Monson have been trained by the State of Illinois for providing information about PUNS services. Please contact either of them for assistance in signing up for the PUNS list.
Special Education Staff
Erin Theleritis is the lead teacher of the Special Education department at EPCHS; in fact, with 30 years of teaching experience, this is the only place she’s ever worked! She primarily teaches Special Education English 3-4 and Special Education Algebra. Originally from Pekin, Illinois, she attended Pekin High School before earning her Bachelor’s degree in Special Education from Eastern Illinois University and her Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Olivet Nazarene University. Erin shares, “The reason I have spent my whole career at EPCHS is because of the wonderful people I work with. I have had the pleasure of working with and calling many of them my friends over the course of the last 30 years. Everyone here is willing to work together for the good of our students. That is what I love the most!” Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends. She also loves to read, travel, and shop (she might be a bit of a clothing and shoe lover!).
Adam Binger is a part of the Special Education department with 9 years of teaching experience and in his 3rd year at EPCHS. He primarily teaches Special Education Physical Science and Biology. He is also the Head Varsity Girls Basketball Coach. Originally from Roscoe, Illinois, he attended Hoonegah High School before earning a Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Social Sciences Education from Carthage College. He is also a certified Learning Behavioral Specialist. He shares, “EPCHS reminds me a lot of the high school and community that I grew up in. It has a great staff that respects the students and does everything it can to help them grow and achieve their goals. Being able to give back to the community that I live in through coaching and teaching is one of the many reasons I enjoy working at EPCHS.” Outside of work, he enjoys traveling, reading books, and spending time with his family. When he isn’t coaching for the high school, you can find him helping out with his sons’ travel sports and his daughter’s travel softball team.
Tracey Carlson
Tracey Carlson is a part of the Special Education department and has been a teacher at EPCHS for 17 years. Originally from Pekin, Illinois, she graduated from Pekin High School before earning her Bachelor’s in Elementary Education and Special Education from Bradley University. Tracey is passionate about fostering students’ learning through structure, consistency, and engagement, as well as instilling the power of relationship in all that occurs inside the classroom. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with family and traveling.
Josh Childs is a part of our Special Education department and has been in teaching for 17 years. Josh teaches Special Education courses, self-contained High School 101, and co-taught Applied Algebra. He is also our Head Girls Soccer coach and is extremely passionate about the EPCHS community. Another EP alum, Mr. Childs graduated from EPCHS in ‘96 before attending ICC and Bradley University to continue his education. Outside of work, he enjoys traveling and spending time with his family.
Nely Hatfield is a member of the Special Education department; she has six years of teaching experience and is entering her third year at EPCHS. Nely primarily teaches English I-II, Life Science, Math and US History in the alternative classroom. She is also our Head Coach for Boys Cross Country. Originally from East Peoria, she attended Peoria Christian High School before earning a degree from Illinois State University and a Learning Behavioral Specialist (LBS1) Certification. She shares, “I'm originally from this community and it made a long-lasting impact on my life. I had humble beginnings growing up but I always had teachers from the feeder schools that went above and beyond the role of a teacher. I knew I had a support system that believed in me. It's my goal to pass that same sentiment forward.” Outside of work, she enjoys reading, hiking and spending quality time with friends and family.
Erica Reinhart is a part of the Special Education department at EPCHS with 15 years of teaching experience, all at EPCHS. She primarily teaches and co-teaches English classes both in special education and general education classrooms. Originally from East Peoria, she is a Class of 2003 East Peoria Alumni. She went on to graduate from Illinois State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Special Education, and recently earned her Master of Science degree in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis on Literacy from Western Illinois University. She shares, “I'd say that my "why" in terms of teaching is that I enjoy working with students and helping them get to the next stage in their lives, whatever that may be. It's such a unique position to work with kids who are on the cusp of adulthood and it's a privilege to be a part of that journey. One thing that I love about EPCHS is how much our staff truly cares about our students and community. Even when I was a student here from 1999-2003 I would say that was the case, and I would say our current staff has upheld that tradition. After choreographing our school's musical productions for ten years, I took on the challenge of directing this past school year. It was incredibly difficult but ultimately rewarding! I'm always on the lookout for any student who expresses interest in participating in theatre on or off the stage for future productions, so I encourage students to stop by my classroom (232B) at any point in the school year to chat!” Outside of work, she enjoys anything in the performing arts sphere, but most specifically dance. She also enjoys spending time with her family and two daughters, cooking, and binge watching any and all quality content on various streaming platforms.
Pete McGinnes is a part of our Special Education department and has been teaching for over 27 years, 21 of those being at East Peoria Community High School. Mr. McGinnes primarily teaches Special Education and Math courses. Originally from Peoria, he graduated from Manual in 1985 before continuing his education at Illinois State University. Pete is passionate about EP because of the dedication and support the staff gives to the students. Outside of work, he officiates football, basketball and baseball.
Emma Harris is a part of our Special Education department and has been teaching for two years, both at EPCHS. Originally from Streator, Illinois, she attended Streator High School before going on to Eureka College to pursue her degree in Special Education and Elementary Education. Emma is motivated by her work and shares that her professional purpose is to open doors for students to find as much independence and success as possible when they leave EPCHS. Ms. Harris is also an advisor of the Prom Committee, and an advisor for Best Buddies. Outside of work, she enjoys coaching volleyball.
Erika Ridge is a member of the Special Education department in her 21st year of teaching. She heads the Life Academy 18-22 Transition Program. Originally from Peoria, Illinois, she attended Richwoods High School before earning her Bachelor of Science in Special Education from Eastern Illinois University. She also has a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Aurora University. She attended Illinois State University to receive two graduate certificates as a Transition Specialist and Multiple Disabilities Specialist. She loves that the staff at EPCHS are wonderful to work with and very supportive of each other. Outside of work, she enjoys cooking and traveling. Mrs. Ridge resides in Washington with her husband and has two dogs and a 20 year old son attending Illinois State University.
Evan Schaller is a part of our Special Education department and has been teaching for 9 years. He primarily teaches vocational development courses. Originally from Hoffman Estates, he graduated from Fremd High School before going on to Northeastern Illinois University for his Bachelor’s in Special Education and Aurora University for his M.A. in Educational Leadership and his graduate certificate in Secondary Transition. Mr. Schaller is passionate about helping students grow not only academically but as a whole. Outside of work, he enjoys board games and traveling.
Bethanie Whittaker is a member of the Special Education department with over 26 years of educational experience, 7 of those being at EPCHS. She primarily teaches Special Education US History, Civics, and Consumer Education. She is also an Executive Board Member and former President of the Illinois Council for Exceptional Children. Originally from Pekin, she attended Peoria Christian High School, Calvary Bible College where she studied Commercial Aviation, Illinois Central College, and Bradley University where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business-Marketing. She also earned a Master of Science in Special Education from Illinois State University and a Master of Science in Educational Leadership from Eastern Illinois University. Bethanie shares, I teach to inspire students to learn, try, and think about new ideas. When they can express and then debate those ideas with each other, seeing the bigger picture, class is fascinating. (Submitted by two of my students!)” Outside of work, she enjoys reading and playing the piano.
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