Study of the Mount Diablo Unified School District - Mt. Diablo Unified ...

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Policies, Procedures, and ComplianceCost Implications for Issue 4‐6:There are no additional costs to the district for this recommendation.Issue 4‐7: Physician Statements as Component of Multidisciplinary Evaluation andProvision of Special Education Related Services.Several principals stated during onsite interviews, focus group discussions, and school visitsthat one‐on‐one assistants are often recommended by a physician and the IEP team isconflicted as to what should be done. The district administrative staff report that additionalspecial education assistant support is considered only after a thorough review of allpertinent data. Once the determination is made to add an assistant, the IEP team decideswhether the assignment is for one‐to‐one or for extra classroom assistance.During on‐site visits and interviews, MGT consultants found that schools often make themistake by acting upon a physician’s recommendation without a careful review of all data.Schools are not consistently aware or may not consistently follow the district processincreasing special education assistant support. While the physician’s statement must beconsidered, but it is the IEP team’s responsibility to guide the IEP process and review thedata for determining the assignment of additional special education assistance support.Schools should consistently follow the district process for assigning special educationassistants.As a best practice, MGT has found that MDUSD maintains up‐to‐date procedural guidelinesfor assignment of additional special education assistant support. The district should furtherprovide direct and consistent professional development and support to school‐based teams,to improve the consistency in the decision‐making regarding accommodations, specialeducation services, and/or related services. As staff becomes knowledgeable and confidentof rules and regulations, the more effective school teams can be in their procedural actions.Considerations for Issue 4‐7:• Ensure that school teams are knowledgeable of and follow the procedural guidelinesfor the assignment of additional special education assistant support.• Provide on‐going staff development to school teams regarding determination ofrelated services and supplemental aides and services, such as special educationassistants.Cost Implications for Issue 4‐7:The costs associated with implementation of this consideration are for staff time andprofessional development. The district should not incur any additional costs in the targetedschools if the professional development and district support are provided during the schoolday during planning periods, faculty meetings, early release days, or embedded staffMGT of America, Inc. Page 4‐13
Policies, Procedures, and Compliancedevelopment in the classroom. If substitutes are required, the district costs would be $120per teacher per day. If professional development is provided after the school day, thedistrict costs would be $25 per hour per teacher.Issue 4‐8: Measurable Goals and Case Management.The monitoring of IEP compliance is not effective or efficient. Based on the records review,while most IEP goals are measurable, they are not consistently documented.The district has not had a consistent, computerized method of developing goals for IEPs.The process for monitoring IEP compliance and timelines in the district has been ineffective.The communications between the schools and the district have also been lacking. Duringonsite focus group discussions, interviews, and review of data, MGT found that the districtoffice does not enter IEP compliance data into the student management system or provideaccurate data reports to the schools in a timely manner.MGT reviewed a random sample of IEPs during school visits. There were a number ofrecords that were reported as out of compliance by the district office when, in fact, theschools had previously submitted the paperwork. This erroneous reporting is due to theinaccuracy or lack of timely entry of IEP information in the student management system.This ineffective system creates extra work for school staff, missed timelines, and inaccuratereporting.There is, however, a districtwide effort to coordinate all IEP development, includingmeasurable goals with student management software. The district staff are optimistic thatthe student management software will alleviate many of the challenges for monitoringspecial education timelines and student records.Case management follow‐through is cited by many as a problem. This manifests itself withplacement decisions that are not managed in a timely fashion, thus delaying placements.Some decisions for transitioning students to the middle school are made at the elementarylevel without input. The result is an IEP that is more elementary‐like without thought tostudents moving from class to class. This problem is further exacerbated if the student inthe fifth grade enters the middle school without an inclusive approach in the elementaryschool.The case managers are also the teachers for the students and require assistance fromprogram specialists who are also serving up to 15 schools in some cases.Considerations for Issue 4‐8:• Develop and implement an accurate and timely procedure for monitoringcompliance of IEPs at the district office.MGT of America, Inc. Page 4‐14
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A Study of theMount Diablo Unified
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TABLE OF CONTENTSPAGEEXECUTIVE SUMM
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Executive SummaryExecutive SummaryF
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Executive SummaryExecutive SummaryI
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Executive SummaryExecutive SummaryF
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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION AND PEER DI
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Introduction and Peer District Comp
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CHAPTER 2: DISTRICT OPERATIONS AND
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District Operations and Associated
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Page 52 and 53: District Operations and Associated
Page 54 and 55: District Operations and Associated
Page 56 and 57: CHAPTER 3: SERVICE DELIVERY OPTIONS
Page 58 and 59: Service Delivery Options and Contin
Page 90 and 91: CHAPTER 4: POLICIES, PROCEDURES, AN
Page 92 and 93: Policies, Procedures, and Complianc
Page 114 and 115: CHAPTER 5: PERSONNEL SERVICES AND P
Page 116 and 117: Personnel Services and Professional
Page 124 and 125: CHAPTER 6: SPIELER V. MT. DIABLO UN
Page 126 and 127: Spieler v. Mt. Diablo Unified Schoo
Page 128 and 129: Spieler v. Mt. Diablo Unified Schoo
Page 130 and 131: APPENDIX A: SURVEYRESULTS
Page 132 and 133: PART A: ADMINISTRATION7. Special ed
Page 134 and 135: EXHIBIT A-3 (Continued)COMPARISON O
Page 136 and 137: PART E: CURRICULUM ANDINSTRUCTIONE.
Page 138 and 139: EXHIBIT A-7COMPARISON OF SURVEY RES
Page 140 and 141: PART G: DISCIPLINEEXHIBIT A-9COMPAR
Page 142 and 143: EXHIBIT A-11COMPARISON OF SURVEY RE
Page 144 and 145: PART K: SPECIALEDUCATION PROGRAMFUN
Page 146 and 147: Appendix A: Survey ResultsEXHIBIT A
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Appendix A: Survey ResultsEXHIBIT A
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APPENDIX BBIBLIOGRAPHYBooksAspy, Ru
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