Louisiana State Resources

Complete update - 7/2007
Partial update - 6/4/2008

The offices listed on this state sheet are primarily state-level offices. Even if an office is not close to your home, they can usually put you in touch with resources in your community, as well as provide you with information and assistance about disability issues in your state. If you find that an address or number has changed or is incorrect, please e-mail us at nichcy@aed.org and let us know.

Age of Eligibility

Each state sets eligibility ages for services to children and youth with disabilities. For current information concerning this state, please contact the office listed under Department of Education: Special Education.

State Agencies and Organizations

United States Senators
Honorable Mary Landrieu (D)
724 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
(202) 224-5824
(202) 224-9735 (Fax)
E-mail Web Form: http://landrieu.senate.gov/contact/index.cfm
Web: http://landrieu.senate.gov

Honorable David Vitter (R)
516 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
(202) 224-4623
(202) 228-5061 (Fax)
E-mail Web Form: http://vitter.senate.gov/?module=webformiqv1
Web: http://vitter.senate.gov

United States Representatives
To find the contact information for your representative in the House of the U.S. Congress, visit the HouseÕs Web site at: www.house.gov, or call: (202) 225-3121; (202) 225-1904 (TTY).

Governor
Honorable Kathleen Babineaux Blanco
Office of the Governor
P.O. Box 94004
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9004
(225) 342-0991; (866) 366-1121
E-mail Web Form: www.managekeelson.com/websites/la.gov/index.cfm?md=form&tmp=home&cfmid=282
Web: www.gov.state.la.us/

Official State Web Site
Web: http://louisiana.gov/wps/portal

Governor's Office of Disability Affairs
Matthew Rovira, Executive Director
GovernorÕs Office of Disability Affairs
P.O. Box 94004
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9004
(225) 219-7550
E-mail: matt.rovira@la.gov
Web: www.gov.state.la.us/disabilityaffairs/default.asp

State Department of Education: Special Education
Susan Wagley Batson, Acting Director
Division of Educational Improvement and Assistance
Louisiana Department of Education
P.O. Box 94064, Room 4-186
Baton Rouge, LA 70804
(225) 342-3513
Web: www.doe.state.la.us/lde/index.html

State Coordinator for NCLB (No Child Left Behind)
Dr. Scott Norton, Assistant Superintendent
Office of Student and School Performance
Louisiana Department of Education
1201 N. 3rd Street
Baton Rouge, LA 70802
(225) 342-3355; (877) 453-2721
Web: www.louisianaschools.net/lde/index.html

Programs for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities: Ages Birth through 2
Brenda Sharp, Program Manager
Louisiana Part C Early Intervention
Office for Citizens with Developmental Disabilities
Louisiana Department of Health & Hospitals
P.O. Box 3117, Bin 21, 682 N. 4th Street
Baton Rouge, LA 70802
(225) 342-8820
E-mail: bsharp@dhh.la.gov
Web: www.dhh.louisiana.gov/offices/?ID=334

Programs for Children with Disabilities: Ages 3 through 5
Mary Louise Jones, Ed.D., 619 Coordinator
Linda Champion, Program Consultant
Division of Standards, Assessments and Accountability
Louisiana Department of Education
P. O. Box 94064
Baton Rouge, LA 70804
(225) 342-3366
E-mail: marylouise.jones@la.gov
E-mail: linda.champion@la.gov
Web: www.louisianaschools.net/lde/index.html

State Vocational Rehabilitation Agency
Roseland Starks, Director
Department of Social Services
Louisiana Rehabilitation Services
P.O. Box 91297
Baton Rouge, LA 70821-9297
(225) 219-2225; (800) 737-2958 (in LA)
E-mail: roseland.starks@dss.state.la.us
Web: www.dss.state.la.us

Coordinator for Transition Services
Keita O. Rone, Supervisor
Division of Educational Improvement and Assistance
Louisiana Department of Education
P.O. Box 94064
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9064
(225) 342-0520
E-mail: keita.rone@la.gov
Web: www.louisianaschools.net/lde/index.html

Office of State Coordinator of Vocational Education for Students with Disabilities
Patricia Merrick, Section Supervisor
Career and Technical Education
Division of Family, Career and Technical Education
Louisiana Department of Education
P.O. Box 94064
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9064
(225) 219-9333
E-mail: Patricia.Merrick@la.gov
Web: www.louisianaschools.net/lde/index.html

State Mental Health Agency
William E. Payne, Jr., Acting Asst. Secretary
Office of Mental Health
Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals
628 N. 4th Street, 4th Floor
P.O. Box 4049
Baton Rouge, LA 70821-4049
(225) 342-2540
E-mail: wpayne@dhh.la.gov
Web: http://www.dhh.la.gov/offices/?ID=62

State Mental Health Representative for Children and Youth
Brandon P. Romano, Psy.D., CCHP
Coordinator of Child, Youth and Family Services
State Child, Youth, and Family Planner
Clinical Psychologist, Psychologist 3
Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals
Office of Mental Health
Bienville Building
628 N. 4th Street
Baton Rouge, LA 70802
(225) 342-0590
E-mail: bromano@dhh.la.gov
Web: www.dhh.state.la.us

Programs for People with Developmental Disabilities
Kathy Kliebert, Assistant Secretary
Office for Citizens with Developmental Disabilities
P.O. Box 3117, Bin 21
Baton Rouge, LA 70821-3117
(225) 342-0095
E-mail: kklieber@dhh.la.gov
Web: www.dhh.louisiana.gov

Councils on Developmental Disabilities
Sandee Winchell, Executive Director
Louisiana Developmental Disabilities Council
P.O. Box 3455
Baton Rouge, LA 70821-3455
(225) 342-6804; (800) 922-3425 (In LA)
E-mail: swinchel@dhh.la.gov
Web: www.laddc.org

Protection and Advocacy Agency
Stephanie Patrick, Director of Outreach & Training
The Advocacy Center
1010 Common Street, Suite 2600
New Orleans, LA 70112
(504) 522-2337; (800) 960-7705 (in LA)
E-mail: spatrick@advocacyla.org
E-mail: advocacycenter@advocacyla.org
Web: www.advocacyla.org

Client Assistance Program
Diane Mirvis, Director
Client Assistance Program
The Advocacy Center
2620 Centenary Boulevard, Suite 248
Shreveport, LA 71104
(318) 227-6186; (800) 960-7705 (in LA only)
E-mail: dmirvis@advocacyla.org
Web: www.advocacyla.org

Programs for Children with Special Health Care Needs
Susan Berry, M.D., Director
Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals
Office of Public Health
ChildrenÕs Special Health Services
1450 L & A Road
Metairie, LA 70802
(504) 568-5055
E-mail: sberry1@dhh.la.gov
Web: www.oph.dhh.state.la.us/childrensspecial/index.html

State CHIP Program
(health care for low-income uninsured children)
Louisiana Children's Health Insurance Program
LaCHIP Processing Office
P.O. Box 91278
Baton Rouge, LA 70821-9278
(877) 252-2447
Web: www.dhh.state.la.us/MEDICAID/LACHIP/Index.htm

Programs for Children and Youth who are Blind or Visually Impaired
Kevin Monk, Executive Director
Blind Services
Department of Social Services
Louisiana Rehabilitation Services
P.O. Box 91297
Baton Rouge, LA 70821-9297
(225) 219-2943
E-mail: kmonk@dss.state.la.us

Division of Educational Improvement and Assistance
Louisiana Department of Education
P.O. Box 94064
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9064
(225) 342-3513
Web: www.louisianaschools.net/lde/index.html

Programs for Children and Youth who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing
June Street, Supervisor
Programs for Students who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing
Louisiana Department of Education
P.O. Box 94064
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9064
(225) 342-0520
E-mail: June.Street@la.gov

Telecommunications Relay Services for Individuals who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing, or with Speech Impairments
(800) 947-5277 (V)
(800) 846-5277 (TTY); 711 (TTY)
(888) 550-5277 (ASCII)
(888) 272-5530 (Speech to Speech)
(800) 737-1813 (Spanish)

Programs for Children and Youth who are Deaf-Blind
Joyce Russo, Director
Deaf Blind Project
Division of Educational Improvement and Assistance
Louisiana Department of Education
P.O. Box 94064
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9064
(225) 342-0520; (877) 453-2721 (in LA)
E-mail: Joyce.Russo@la.gov
Web: www.doe.state.la.us

State Education Agency Rural Representative
Cheryl Crawford, Supervisor
Richland Parish School Board
Special Education
P.O. Box 599
Rayville, LA 71269
(318) 728-5964
Web: www.richland.k12.la.us

Regional ADA & IT Technical Assistance Center
Wendy Wilkinson, Director
DBTAC - Southwest ADA Center
Independent Living Research Utilization
2323 S. Shepard Boulevard, Suite 1000
Houston, TX 77019
(713) 520-0232 (V/TTY); (800) 949-4232 (V/TTY)
E-mail: dlrp@ilru.org
Web: www.dlrp.org

University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities
Philip Wilson, Director
LSUHSC-Human Development Center
University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities
Room 1036 Allied Health/Nursing Building
1900 Gravier Street
New Orleans, LA 70112
(504) 556-7573
E-mail: pwilso2@lsuhsc.edu
Web: www.hdc.lsuhsc.edu

Technology-Related Assistance
Julie Nesbit, President/CEO
Louisiana Assistive Technology Access Network
P.O. Box 14115
Baton Rouge, LA 70898
(225) 925-9500; (800) 270-6185 (V/TTY)
E-mail: cpourciau@latan.org
Web: www.latan.org

State Mediation System
Abie Dupont, Coordinator
Legal Services Division
Louisiana Department of Education
P.O. Box 94064
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9064
(225) 342-4482
E-mail: abie.dupont@la.gov
Web: www.louisianaschools.net/lde/index.html

Special Format Library
Margaret Harrison, Librarian
State Library of Louisiana
Services for the Blind and Physically Handicapped
701 N. Fourth Street
Baton Rouge, LA 70802
(225) 342-0035; (800) 543-4702
(800) 543-4702
E-mail: sbph@state.lib.la.us
Web: http://test.state.lib.la.us/VisImpaired/visimp_dyn_templ.cfm?doc_id=99