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• CADRE (Center for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education)

CADRE Activities

• APR/SPP Procedural Safeguard Data Collection and Analysis
• Beyond Mediation Dialogue Guide Package
• Beyond Mediation: Strategies For Appropriate Early Dispute Resolution In Special Education
• Building Collaborative Relationships in Special Education: Foundations and Strategies
• CADRE Brochure
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Center Overview

The Center for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education (CADRE), a national technical assistance and dissemination project, works toward elevating the capacity of educators, family members, service providers and other stakeholders to engage in collaborative problem-solving and other positive, non-adversarial processes. Ultimately, this approach results in better educational programs and outcomes for students with disabilities. CADRE delivers high quality technical assistance and informational support to state education agencies (Part B), early intervention lead agencies (Part C), parent centers, local education agencies, local early intervention providers, and dispute resolution practitioners.

Methods

CADRE activities facilitate increased and effective use of mediation and other alternative dispute resolution forms that result in a reduction in the financial, relational, and emotional costs of more adversarial procedures. The activities of the project derive from three critically significant factors: the promise of alternative dispute resolution (ADR), the nascent knowledge of and difficulty in measuring effectiveness and outcomes in ADR programs, and the roles and functions of technical assistance (TA) as a bridge between system need and effective practice. CADRE's major priorities are to: 1) Identify effective, cost-beneficial dispute resolution practices and support their implementation; 2) Enhance collaboration between education/early intervention agencies and parent organizations; 3) Promote improved problem-solving skills across stakeholder groups; 4) Assist states to implement the dispute resolution provisions of IDEA ‘04; 5) Support integration of dispute resolution management and improved state system performance; and 6) Compile State Performance Plan data and information on the characteristics of state systems.