Regional Comprehensive System of Personnel Development Council Activity in Big Sky Country

Abstract

The Montana Office of Public Instruction, Special Education Division, initiated its state Comprehensive System of Personnel Development (CSPD) Council 15 years ago in compliance with Public Law 94–142, The Education of All Handicapped Children Act. The state council has remained active and has become stronger from its beginning to the present time. Because of the large geography of the state and diversity of needs across the state, however, the state council was somewhat limited and fragmented in meeting personnel development needs. Consequently, the state council implemented a CSPD regionalization concept based on the five existing Developmental Disabilities Planning and Advisory Council (DDPAC) and Montana Council of Administrators of Special Education (MCASE) regions. The purpose of this article is to report on strategies and activities of regional CSPD actions in Montana. The regional model holds promise for replication as a framework of personnel development in other large rural states. This information is represented within the context of the recently enacted amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act through the provisions of Public Law 105–17.