P.R. Laws tit. 18, § 61
(a) The “Puerto Rico Education System Inclusion Program”, attached to the Department of Education, is hereby created to facilitate the effective integration of teachers and students of all school levels with persons having special needs and for related purposes.
(b) Approaches. — The Department of Education shall comply with the objectives and purposes of this section through the following mechanisms:
(1) Offer courses to all the teachers in the Education System at least once during each academic year on how to treat, integrate and actively include children with disabilities within their classrooms and/or classes.
(2) Offer workshops to homeroom teachers on how to use courses and integrate the fundamentals on the treatment and acceptance of persons with disabilities into existing courses, as well as showing appreciation [for] the potential of persons with disabilities. Such workshops shall be offered at least once per semester in each educational region.
(3) Offer workshops to children with disabilities who receive services from the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Educational Services for Persons with Disabilities and to their parents and guardians on their rights, self-esteem and leadership, and their capabilities, duties and responsibilities as citizens.
(4) Offer training to the remaining members of the school community to guarantee compliance with the purposes of this section.
(c) Duties of the Secretary. —
(1) The Secretary of the Department of Education is hereby empowered to take all the necessary measures to guarantee the success and permanence of this Program, which shall include, without being limited to, the following:
(A) To assign resources and a budget to the Program.
(B) To include aspects of the Program in the curriculum of the different academic programs, courses and programs of the Department.
(C) To establish cooperation agreements with the agencies or entities he/she deems pertinent in order to comply with the objectives of this section.
(D) To create the regulations and issue the administrative orders he/she deems pertinent in order to comply with the objectives of this act within forty-five (45) days [after] its approval.
(E) To establish the scope of the Program and the content of the courses to be offered within sixty (60) days [after] the approval of this measure.
(F) To identify the personnel that shall offer orientations to the teachers in the Public Education System on how to integrate inclusion strategies into the regular mainstream courses.
(G) To establish work committees to achieve the objectives of this section.
(H) To assign the personnel he/she deems necessary to comply with the objectives of the Program and establish the training deemed necessary to satisfy the needs of the Program created by this section.
(I) To render an annual detailed report to the Legislature on the status, effectiveness and progress of the Program.
History —Aug. 26, 2005, No. 104, §§ 1, 2, 4.