Interagency Collaboration
Interagency Collaboration (LEA)
The Interagency Collaboration Exemplar Lead is a Local Educational Agency (LEA) focused Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA), or County Office of Education (COE), that has systems in place that engage the LEA with their local Regional Center in highly collaborative and compliant Individuals with Disabilities Eduation Act (IDEA) Part C to B transitions that support positive outcomes for students and families. This Exemplar Lead provides technical assistance as well as systems models that highlight successful IDEA Part C to B transitions.
Interagency Collaboration (Regional Center)
The Interagency Collaboration Exemplar Lead, Regional Center focused, is a Regional Center that has systems in place that engage the Regional Center with their local LEA’s in highly collaborative and compliant Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part C to B transitions that support positive outcomes for students and families. This Exemplar Lead provides technical assistance as well as systems models that highlight successful IDEA Part C to B transitions between Regional Center and LEAs.
Exemplar Leads for Interagency Collaboration
San Diego Regional Center
Sarah Franco, M.A., is the Manager of Client Services, Early Childhood, at the San Diego Regional Center where she has worked for more than 21 years. Sarah was instrumental in developing processes and procedures for smooth transitions for referrals from Part C to Part B under IDEA. SDRC has excellent working relationships with local education agencies in addition to strong interagency agreements. Sarah is the 0-5 Transition Liaison for San Diego Regional Center. Sarah is the Child Welfare Services Early Start Liaison for San Diego Regional Center. Sarah is very engaged in education and outreach, and is part of 2 large DDS grants focused on outreach to underserved populations which includes children experiencing homelessness, children experiencing immigration issues, and Tribal outreach. Sarah has been part of numerous DDS audits where SDRC has reached 100% compliance in relation to transition. Sarah has a passion for ensuring that infants and toddlers in San Diego County continue to receive quality services. Sarah takes pride in her strong community partnerships.

East County SELPA
Heather DiFede is the Executive Director of the East County Special Education Local Plan Area (East County SELPA) in San Diego, California. During her tenure as District Director and SELPA Director, she has led collaborative meetings with San Diego Regional Center (SDRC) resulting in IFSP form development, Interagency Agreement revisions, and countywide joint trainings with SDRC & LEAs. Heather has served on the San Diego Part C Interagency Leadership Committee for more than 10 years, serving as its chair for several years. She has been an administrator for Local Education Agencies that provide IDEA Part C services for more than 7 years. In addition to work in Part C, Heather has provided numerous trainings specializing in special education data throughout California. She has served as the Chair of the SELPA Administrators' Association of California, and was awarded the Association of California School Administrators Special Education Administrator of the Year in 2016.

East County SELPA
Lucia Garay, consultant, has worked in the field of education for more than 38 years. Her collective experiences as an aide, teacher, and site, district and county administrator have provided a strong base for her work in support of 0-5 programs in California. Ms. Garay’s work has focused on quality improvement in early education and care settings; increased inclusive opportunities through facilitation of interagency agreements and their implementation; maximizing resources across special education, general education, and community-based organizations for the work force serving 0-5 year-olds; alignment and transition to TK-12 by supporting local program administrators to maximize program funding and to understand required accountability requirements; and aligning policies and processes to facilitate linguistically and culturally appropriate child-focused program implementation through California’s very complex, diverse early education and care system. She is a firm believer in collaboration and is committed to continuous improvement in the field of early childhood.

Interagency Collaboration Resources

Support Materials

Learn how to develop and sustain Interagency Collaborations and Agreeements using this helpful roadmap!

Interagency collaborations are successful when partners engage in establishing practices that deepen and expand beyond the written interagency agreements required by law.
This session will provide administrators and managers from Regional Centers and LEAs a detailed overview of the CalECSE flow chart on Developing and Sustaining Successful Interagency Collaborations and Agreements. The presentation will include information on how to access and implement these resources.
Support Materials

An overview of Interagency Collaboration: Special Education Best Practices for Transitioning to Preschool