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

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Service Delivery Options and Continuum of ServicesConsiderations for Issue 3‐17:• Implement a districtwide systematic review of IEPs to ensure that they clearly linkpresent level, goals, and objectives to specific indicators or standards.• Provide districtwide guidance to teachers who struggle with the development ofIEPs through peer teachers, program specialists, and regularly scheduleddepartmental meetings.Cost Implications for Issue 3‐17:Costs associated with this consideration are related to staff time and professionaldevelopment. Work tasks should be completed during the work day, resulting in noadditional costs to the district.Issue 3‐18: Mental Health Collaborative Services.The Department of Pupil Services and Special Education has created a number of specializedprograms for students with disabilities in need of intensive services.The Mental Health Collaborative is a shared partnership between MDUSD, Contra CostaCounty Mental Health and three agencies: FamiliesFirst, Inc., Fred Finch Youth Center, andSeneca Center. This service delivery model is funded with a braided funding modelbetween MDUSD and Contra Costa County Mental Health Medical and AB3632. TheMental Health Collaborative is a clinical intervention model that provides students inMDUSD a team approach, integrating special education and mental health services in theleast restrictive setting. The ultimate goal of the program is to prepare students to beindependent and productive participants in their local schools and communities. Studentsreferred to the program are at risk of requiring nonpublic school placements and residentialplacements.Based on documentation provided by Contra Costa Health Services, IDEA is intended toensure that students with disabilities receive special education services necessary for themto benefit from a free and appropriate public education (FAPE). The state of Californiareceives funding for agreeing to comply with the requirements of IDEA. AB3632 is theresult of lawsuits and advocacy to increase special education students’ access to mentalhealth services. Under the California Code of Regulations, county mental healthdepartments are mandated to provide mental health services specifically through IDEA andare legally bound with families and students to provide those IDEA stipulated services.Services may include, for example, outpatient, day treatment, and residential care.The district’s cooperative agreement with Contra Costa Mental Health Services supports thedistrict’s school psychologists who provide Child Family Team (CFT) facilitation andcounseling clinic services to students and families who require mental health services.District psychologists bill for their services through County Mental Health Medi‐Cal. TheMGT of America, Inc. Page 3‐23
Service Delivery Options and Continuum of Servicesdepartment administration indicated during onsite visits that all salaries and expenses forthese services are covered by monthly billings generated by the school psychologist toMedi‐Cal, and SB90, a claiming mechanism for students who qualify for services underAB3632. In order to access these services, students must be evaluated and diagnosed witha mental health disorder as defined by the DSM‐IV. The school psychologist positionsassigned to the collaborative provide the mental health assessments, and the Contra CostaMental Health Services reviews and verifies the mental health diagnosis for eligiblestudents, thus qualifying the student for mental health counseling provided by thecollaborative.According to the department, this collaboration by the district and Contra Costa HealthServices is considered a model program. In November 2007, the Contra Costa County Boardof Supervisors recognized this program for its exemplary services to students.The district funding match required by the Contra Costa Mental Health Services is $930,952.Based on documentation provided by the Contract Costa Health Services, this local matchsupports five separate contracts, two directly with MDUSD, Sunrise/Alliance and Fair OaksMedi‐Cal clinic, and three community‐based contracts with Families First, Fred Finch, andSeneca. The contracts total $7,469,462, most of which is drawn from Medi‐Cal and SB90claiming.With 352 students enrolled in the program, the average cost per student is $2,644. Basedon data provided by the Department, each nonpublic school placement for students withmental health needs costs the district $35,000 to $40,000 or more, depending upon theadditional related services and mental health services offered. The data further estimates a$19,000 to $24,000 cost savings per student by maintaining students in the Mental HealthCollaborative rather than providing education in a nonpublic school. According to districtadministration, if the mental health collaborative contracts are maximized, the MDUSD’sshare of the cost would be 12.5 cents for every dollar of service. Further, it is reported bydistrict administration that the cost/benefit to MDUSD could be significant, especially giventhe professional level of programming.During school visits and classroom observations, MGT consultants found very high adult‐tostudentratios, typically ranging from one adult to two or three students at all grade levels.MGT recognizes that best‐practice models have a high adult‐to‐student ratio for studentswith severe emotional or behavioral challenges; however, in some cases, MGT consultantsobserved situations where there were more adults than students in classrooms and instudent isolation areas. During classroom observations of numerous programs across thedistrict, MGT consultants did not observe any consistent and active engagement of studentswith mental health personnel or instructional staff. MGT consultants did not observe anycounseling sessions or mental health interventions by the school psychologists assigned tothe collaborative. MGT consultants observed disengagement of students and/or whole‐classinstruction in 87 percent of classrooms observed.MGT of America, Inc. Page 3‐24
Page 1 and 2:
A Study of theMount Diablo Unified
Page 3 and 4:
TABLE OF CONTENTSPAGEEXECUTIVE SUMM
Page 6 and 7:
Executive SummaryExecutive SummaryF
Page 8 and 9:
Executive SummaryExecutive SummaryI
Page 10 and 11:
Executive SummaryExecutive SummaryF
Page 12 and 13:
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION AND PEER DI
Page 14 and 15:
Introduction and Peer District Comp
Page 16 and 17:
Page 18 and 19:
Page 20 and 21:
Page 22 and 23:
Page 24 and 25:
Page 26 and 27:
Page 28 and 29: Introduction and Peer District Comp
Page 30 and 31: Introduction and Peer District Comp
Page 32 and 33: CHAPTER 2: DISTRICT OPERATIONS AND
Page 34 and 35: 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
Page 148 and 149:
Page 150 and 151:
Page 152 and 153:
Page 154 and 155:
Page 156 and 157:
Page 158 and 159:
Page 160 and 161:
Page 162 and 163:
Page 164 and 165:
Page 166 and 167:
Page 168 and 169:
Page 170 and 171:
Page 172 and 173:
Page 174 and 175:
Page 176 and 177:
Page 178 and 179:
Page 180 and 181:
Page 182 and 183:
APPENDIX BBIBLIOGRAPHYBooksAspy, Ru
show all

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

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?