Reforms planned for special education system

All Children Matter

An Overview of Initial Reform Efforts Focused on Improving and Building Services and

Supports For Students with Disabilities in the Washoe County School District

2015-2016

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Message from Superintendent Davis

My educational philosophy is really quite simple – all children matter. From my experience as a classroom teacher, principal, area superintendent, and deputy superintendent, I know it is possible to ensure that all students succeed, regardless of race and/or ethnicity, socioeconomic status, language, gender or gender identity expression, or physical or learning abilities. In July 2015, I was asked to serve as the superintendent and I brought this belief to our work in the Washoe County School District.

All academic needs are not equal. Our students come to school every day with a variety of backgrounds and academic and social needs. Additionally, a significant number of students face the additional challenge of dealing with disabilities. The responsibility of all of us in WCSD is to customize the learning environment to meet the wide-ranging needs of our diverse learners and to leverage learning opportunities for each and every student, no matter their challenge. Our focus is to build an equitable educational environment.

Improving the education and outcomes for our students with disabilities will be a District priority for the 2015-2016 school year and throughout my service as your superintendent. I am heartened about the progress that we have made over the past nine months in Student Support Services and look forward to continuing this with renewed emphasis this upcoming year.

This document provides a general outline of the work we have started as a District that will lead the work in our schools and Student Support Services in this next year. It also details preliminary reforms that are underway (or will soon be launched) in the Washoe County School District.

My guiding belief is “Every Child, By Name and Face, to Graduation,” and I am so excited that the work we are doing supports that principle.

Traci Davis Superintendent Washoe County School District

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All Children Matter

Overview

The purpose of this document is to provide an overview of initial reform efforts focused on improving and building services and supports for students with disabilities in the Washoe County School District. It is important to recognize that reform efforts will take several years to implement and will impact every department and school in the District.

To assist in this work, WCSD partnered with WestEd Center for Prevention and Early Intervention. WCSD also gathered information directly from WCSD teachers who provide direct supports for students with disabilities.

• WestEd Center for Prevention and Early Intervention was asked to analyze the District’s system of supports for children with disabilities to assess ways in which the system could be improved, so as to improve results for special education students. The final report can be accessed online at http://www.washoeschools.net/Page/4419 and has been referenced throughout this document.

• Seven Town Hall meetings were held for teachers in April and May 2015. The purpose of the Town Hall meetings was to listen to practitioners about their perceptions of the state of special education in the WCSD. Four types of certified practitioner groups were invited to participate, including special education teachers, classroom teachers who are involved with special education, school staff whose work touches special education (e.g. counselors, psychologists), and school administrators, which totaled 662 staff from across the district. As a result, 200 WCSD teachers attended and provided feedback. The final

report can be accessed online at http://www.washoeschools.net/Page/4434 and has also been referenced throughout this document.

o Note: Several events have been scheduled throughout the 2015-2016 school year for classified staff (aides & assistants) and families of students with disabilities. Data and feedback collected at the events will be analyzed and also used to guide reform efforts.

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The following topics are highlighted in All Children Matter:

1. AccountabilityforALLStudents Page5

2. StructuresofSupport Page8

3. InstructionandPerformance Page12

4. Compliance Page19

5. GeneralEffortsforStudentswithDisabilities Page22

6. Partnerships Page25

7. Acknowledgements Page25

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1. Accountability for ALL Students

The Washoe County School District (WCSD) Board of Trustees has taken an essential first step by recognizing the need for reform in how we support students with disabilities in our classrooms and school buildings. This reform must focus on student learning in the classroom and how our schools are supporting students with disabilities through inclusive practices. This reform also needs to be reflective in the support and services provided by Student Support Services. The goal must always focus on how we as a District are working hand in hand with parents and families so all of our students can fulfill their dreams and reach their academic potential.

It is imperative, however, in a time of limited resources and increased demands, that roles and responsibilities are clearly defined. A clear understanding of how our system supports individual students’ needs and learning is critical. Therefore, we must define structures, programs, and expectations for our students, staff, and families, which will lead to better support for our students. The greatest challenge of a large district is coordinating the actions of numerous people, including teachers, school staff, central office, families, and the community.

In the report, Systemic Improvement to Increase Performance of Students with Disabilities, Recommendations to the Washoe County School District, by WestEd Center for Prevention and Early Intervention, the first focus area identified is Culture and Climate. This area of focus included the following recommendation:

• Create and sustain an inclusive culture of high expectations for all students, recognizing that students with disabilities are part of the larger educational system and that there shouldn’t be a separate vision for, or single department who bears responsibility for, their success.

In alignment with this area of focus, Student Support Services has identified six critical elements to providing effective services in WCSD:

1. The classroom is the core of learning for students and the center of the wheel. The classroom teacher is responsible for meeting the needs of all students, regardless of disability, culture, gender, socioeconomic status, and present level of achievement. Resources must focus on supporting students and teachers to ensure academic achievement and success is obtained as a result of high expectations for all. Understanding that the classroom is the focus of all efforts is essential.

2. The school is the first spoke on the wheel that supports the students and the teacher in the classroom. Schools provide direct structures of support, including professional development, collaboration, and interventions. For students with disabilities, site administrators (Local Educational Agency) lead the Individualized Education Program (IEP) team and help to identify the individual needs of students. School staff must build

Accountability for ALL Students

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partnerships with parents and families to develop strong communication for student success. The Office of School Performance, with assistance from Student Support Services, is responsible for this spoke and leads these efforts.

3. Student Support Services is the second spoke on the wheel to support students, teachers, schools, and parents. Student Support Services is a department of combined support whose role is critical for ensuring students with disabilities’ instructional needs are met as well as ensuring IEPs are being implemented as designed.

The function of Student Support Services is to:

• Raise educator awareness on best practices in special education, • Provide professional development to administrators, certified, and classified staff, • Coordinate with schools to provide related services for students with disabilities, • Monitor/ensure compliance, according to federal law (Individuals with Disabilities

Education Improvement Act - IDEIA) and the Nevada Administrative Code (NAC), • Assist with IEP development and implementation, • Assist schools in reviewing data for students with disabilities, and • Build collaboration between schools and families.

4. WCSD central office departments are the third spoke on the wheel of support for students with disabilities. These departments provide essential resources for students and schools and are accountable for the work they do and the results they obtain. For example, the Department of Transportation transports many students with disabilities from their home to school. This service must continue to be prompt, timely, trustworthy, and safe. This is critical to each student’s educational success.

Another example includes the Office of Academics, which leads and is responsible for instructional practices, curriculum, and instructional materials. The Office of School Performance and Student Support Services works collaboratively with the Office of Academics regarding these supports for students with disabilities.

5. Parents and Families are the fourth spoke on the wheel. Families’ past experiences influence their connection to school and education, including a child’s special needs, limited English proficiency, cultural diversity, socioeconomic status, and knowledge of the education system. Student data shows that in 2013-2014, more than one in ten (13.5%) students had an Individualized Education Plan (IEP); 15.9% were English Language Learners (ELL); and 47.7% were eligible for the Free and Reduced Lunch Program (FRL).

Parents and families also play a vital role in helping schools better understand their child's unique needs and interests. Our newly adopted strategic plan: Envision WCSD 2020 - Investing in Our Future specifically identifies Goal 3 as: “Families and community members will be in strong relationships that have meaningful opportunities to increase expertise,


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trust, and share responsibility for student success.” This focus on families is supported by extensive research that documents the connection between parent and family engagement and improved educational outcomes for all students, regardless of background. (Partners in Education, A Dual Capacity-Building Framework for Family-School Partnerships, SEDL, http://www2.ed.gov/documents/family-community/partners-education.pdf).

Our schools, along with Student Support Services and WCSD staff, continue to build trust and capacity to serve our diverse families, and especially our families of students with disabilities. The Department of Family-School Partnerships will assist in this important work, its staff members help to build partnerships between families and schools so that every child will graduate from high school, ready for college and/or highly skilled careers.

6. Our community is the fifth spoke on the wheel of support for students with disabilities. Community agencies, non-profit organizations, and advocacy groups provide direct services to students and should be active partners in our District’s efforts to support the needs of students with disabilities. Student Support Services is responsible for engaging the community in creating and supporting efforts and partnerships that serve students with disabilities.

These six critical elements to providing effective services in WCSD are the foundation of this reform. The WestEd report explicitly identifies this issue:

Designated leaders within the District Office and various Departments will need to champion the vision as implicitly connected to students with disabilities and help draw tangible lines to assist staff in understanding what this vision means with regard to planning for, providing, and measuring the success of educational endeavors for special education students. In other words, how is the vision operationalized in daily practice, at the classroom, school, and district level?


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2. Structures of Support

While the classroom teacher and the school provide direct instruction and support for students with disabilities, Student Support Services must provide effective and responsive structures of support for both teachers and schools.

• Program Placement Superintendent Davis asked Dr. Byron Green, Chief Student Services Officer, to conduct a comprehensive review of program placement for students with disabilities. Students should receive instruction, whenever possible, at their zoned school or at their neighborhood school. This review will be completed by December 2015.

• Data Student Support Services will review trend data in order to anticipate student growth and be better prepared to allocate teacher and aide positions to schools, working to ensure stability in staffing positions. Through recent legislation, the Nevada Department of Education changed how our school district receives funding for students with disabilities. The legislation will help us provide greater student support beginning in the 2016-2017 school year.

The Office of Accountability has supported schools and Student Support Services by providing real time data to schools through a variety of reports, program evaluation, and the Business Intelligence Gateway (BIG). Schools now have the capacity to disaggregate data for students with disabilities, allowing schools the ability to access information. Schools and staff can now see how students with the same or similar disabilities are progressing and review their overall success. The partnership between Student Support Services and the Office of Accountability focuses on ensuring valid and useful data is used to support student learning.

In the next year, Student Support Services is working to include students’ Individualized Educational Programs (IEPs) on the WCSD student information system, Infinite Campus (IC). Currently, WCSD uses EasyIEP, which is a system that assists in the development of IEPs as well as with document storage. This is an extremely important transition as data in IC aligns with WCSD systems. Positive outcomes include:

o Staff (certified and classified) monitoring, especially staff who work with one or two students;

o District-wide IEP goals/benchmarks monitoring; o Data monitoring, ensuring accurate data and goal development are reflective of students’

academic progress; and o Comprehensive data analysis through the WCSD Business Intelligence Gateway (BIG),

including student, school, and longitudinal programming data.

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The WestEd report also addresses data systems in the fifth area of focus and included the following recommendation:

o Unify data systems in order to share accurate, timely, and actionable information across various departments and develop agreements regarding how to legally and effectively use information for a variety of purposes.

The WestEd report further states, “It appears as if the database information relies solely on an individual person, rather than a system. There are inconsistencies within the data decision-making process to allocate resources, plan educational programs, and provide support to personnel.” The initial steps listed above begin to address this systemic deficiency. For example, staffing information was maintained on a stand-alone database due to a lack of a developed system. In May 2015, this database was discontinued and all staffing information is now gathered through Business Plus, the adopted WCSD system. This was a critical first step toward “an integrated data system [that] will increase stakeholders’ engagement and link district services and allocate resources while facilitating a data-driven culture.” (WestEd Center for Prevention and Early Intervention, 2015).

• The Office of Human Resources is responsible for hiring, recruiting, and retaining special education teachers. However, Student Support Services will provide new and veteran teachers with mentoring and assistance. Our school district has a duty to provide initial and ongoing support for teachers requiring assistance. An outcome from the Teacher Town Halls was a request for greater teacher support: “Although there is a mentor program in place for new teachers, several participants asked for greater support for new teachers.” New teachers to special education positions access mentoring through Special Education Area Administrators, Implementation Specialists, the WCSD Department of Professional Learning Department, and school sites. Structures of support include elective monthly seminars, site-based content, monthly IEP/compliance training and instructional practice training. Special Education Area Administrators and Implementation Specialists provide embedded and ongoing professional development through their site visits, which take place approximately every 15 days.

Student Support Services is responsible for hiring special education aides and assistants. Hiring practices, orientation, and professional development offerings are being reviewed for effectiveness. Aides and assistants are critical in providing direct support for our students, and Student Support Services will support these invaluable staff members.

• Student Support Services will provide direct support to schools on a regular and frequent basis. This support will focus on instructional practices, IEP support/compliance monitoring, and behavioral support. Student Support Services staff will visit and support every school at least once every 15 school days, or more frequently if requested or necessary.


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• Schools directly service and support families’ needs. However, Student Support Services can provide supplemental support for families by offering opportunities to learn and share. For example, Student Support Services partnered with the Newton Center to host an Autism Conference in October 2015 for families and the community. Another example is the creation of specific Parent University courses for families of students with disabilities, which will be offered throughout the 2015-2016 school year. Specific information regarding opportunities for families is included in this document.

• The Department of Equity and Diversity will provide professional development for culturally responsive practices around building a District-wide equitable framework. The framework addresses culture, leadership, and practice by focusing on rigor, relevancy, relationships, and expectations. Additionally, equity will be addressed through professional development that will lead reflective practices to decrease disproportionally and increase access for underrepresented students. In addition to professional development, an Equity Audit will be conducted in collaboration with other departments to ensure that climate, culture, and instructional practices meet the individual needs of all students, families, and staff.

• At the Teacher Town Hall meetings, teachers repeatedly stated how difficult it is to provide high-quality instruction, case manage, and meet the numerous paperwork requirements associated with implementing IEPs. The following information was included in the Town Hall final summary: o Demands on staff time mentioned included data collection/documentation of

accommodations, paperwork, unexpected requests from Student Support Services without lead time to respond, revision of IEPs, unnecessary meetings, meetings to fight for allocations, responding to email, responding to behavior needs, certain approaches to progress monitoring (i.e. AIMSweb probes), testing, writing student learning objectives (referred to as SLOs), lack of timely responses from district support (requires time to search for answers on own), progress reports, and providing information to Student Support Services Records Department each time a file changes school sites.

In response to this issue, Student Support Services is conducting a pilot program at Reed High School. A classified staff member has been assigned to the school for the 2015-2016 school year and is responsible for assisting special education teachers with paperwork requirements, including the scheduling of IEPs. Data is being collected on the success of the pilot program and a review of the cost effectiveness, with a possible expansion in the 2016-2017 school year.

• Also at the Teacher Town Hall meetings, teachers expressed concern regarding the Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS). Specifically, the Teacher Town Hall summary included: o Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) was described by several participants as

inconsistently implemented, particularly at the secondary level. Some suggested that the eligibility process is not fully understood by general education staff. Additional training for


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MTSS was requested, particularly pertaining to behavior and interventions for behavior. Several participants requested additional training for school building administrators to become well-versed in MTSS so they can better support the framework.

Over the past six months, the Department of MTSS has collaborated with Student Support Services, Intervention and Truancy, Behavior Services, and Equity and Diversity, which has resulted in:

o Strong Tier 1 supports for all students in WCSD, including braiding behavioral supports for both general and special education students;

o MTSS is identified as one of the Four WCSD Fundamentals for all schools; o The creation of a District Intervention Assistance Team (IAT), in collaboration with

school sites, which meets weekly and case manages students with significant struggles;

o The creation of MTSS supports for Areas and schools, including an assigned MTSS coach, an Implementation Specialist for behavior, Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA), classified behavior technician, school social worker and community supports for each Performance Area; and

o On-site coaching and increased professional development; and o Quarterly & monthly targeted PD based on site-based data to strengthen

implementation.

The purpose of these systemic changes is to provide timely, accurate, and supportive assistance to teachers and schools in regards to the MTSS process.

• Finally, a common theme of poor communication and lack of recognition emerged at the Teacher Town Hall meetings. In the Teacher Town Hall meeting summary, one of the four predominant suggestions was to improve delivery of services within Student Support Services. In August 2015, Student Support Services published the Bright IDEA, the first WCSD special education newsletter. The purpose of this bimonthly newsletter is to highlight teachers, aides/assistants, and administrators who are providing exceptional services to students with disabilities. The newsletter also recognizes outstanding programs at schools and provides staff with information about upcoming professional development opportunities, Family-Engagement information, and Equity and Diversity professional development opportunities.


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3. Instruction and Performance

Initial reform efforts are focusing on student learning in the classroom and how schools are supporting students with disabilities through inclusive practice. Student Support Services provides a key role in supporting schools toward improving instruction and increasing student performance. However, this is a difficult task since each school has unique challenges and needs. For example, each school administration is responsible for:

• Developing an individualized School Performance Plan each school year, based on data specific to that school and community,

• Identifying professional development needs for staff, • Conducting observations on teachers, formally and informally, and • Continuously reviewing the school and student data.

Just as we expect teachers to differentiate support and instruction for students, Student Support Services will also differentiate support and structures for schools, teachers, and aides/assistants. Student Support Services will provide District-wide support (e.g. inclusive practice professional development) while working individually with each school to support their needs:

• District-wide professional development – for all school based Implementation Specialists and school administrators: o Provided by Stetson & Associates trainers;

§ For example, Stetson & Associates trainers led two professional development sessions in June and August 2015 for school teams comprised of seven staff members. This professional development provided an initial overview of inclusive practice and allowed school teams to look at current practices and instructional planning. Forty schools participated in this professional development.

o Provided by Student Support Services’ Implementation Specialist teams with areas of expertise; § For example, Student Support Services’ Implementation Specialists attend all Blue

Friday professional development and lead professional development for all WCSD implementation specialists, focusing on inclusive practices.

• School specific support, based on School Performance Plans and requests; o Supported through site visits, approximately every 15 days; and

• Focused assistance – based on requests and past challenges.

Student Support Services strongly believes that comprehensive and ongoing professional development must be provided to teachers, aides, and assistants. The WestEd report and the

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Teacher Town Hall summary both identified the need to provide professional development and support to District staff.

• WestEd Report (direct quotations italicized) o Human Capital was identified as the fourth focus area, with the general

recommendation: Align professional development activities and collaborative support between Human Resources, Student Support Services, and other programs to promote high expectations and ownership of all students by all staff.

o The district vision, Every child, by name and face, to graduation cannot be realized for every child without a comprehensive professional development plan and deep collaboration between Student Support Services, Human Resources, and other departments/programs charged with enhancing human capital.

o Students with disabilities must be educated in their least restrictive environment (LRE) with typically developing peers to the greatest extent appropriate. In terms of Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) research, students who are educated within the general education population achieve at greater levels than those placed in more restrictive settings. In order to accomplish such, a comprehensive professional development plan cannot be developed for special education staff in isolation.

• Teacher Town Hall Summary (direct quotations italicized) o The importance of quality support staff, such as instructional aides, to meeting the needs

of students and providing administrative supports was emphasized. o One of the four predominant suggestions to improve delivery of services within

Student Support Services was to conduct an audit to determine severity of student needs and number of students who require services per school. Use this information to determine allocation distribution across WCSD schools.

o Overall, participants appreciated the professional development opportunities offered to them and wanted more.

During the 2015-2016 school year, Student Support Services will work directly with teachers, principals, and families to accomplish the following:

• In collaboration with the Offices of Academics and School Performance, provide students with disabilities a pathway of support leading to greater student success in high school and beyond. WCSD staff is working to reduce the number of times students are placed in remedial coursework for core content, when appropriate and determined by the IEP team. When this happens, students are not exposed to the curriculum to be eligible for end of course exams or the Nevada Academic Core Content testing. Long term, these steps will include the reduction of remedial courses from all middle and high schools. This will lead to greater student access to college. The Office of School Performance has started this difficult work with students who access an IEP. Figure 1 shows the enrollment patterns for 9th grade students who access their education on an IEP.


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Figure1

• Provide schools with tools and techniques that enable all staff members to meet the needs of a diverse student population. This includes equipping them with the knowledge and skills to effectively reach every student. Staff will look through a lens of differentiation and tailor instruction to individual students’ needs.

• Provide school administrators with professional development to proactively deal with complex issues and individuals with significant needs, including ongoing Local Educational Agency (LEA) professional development. For example, at the September and October administrative meeting (Lead, Teach, Learn – LTL), Student Support Services provided professional development for all school administrators on the responsibilities of an LEA, roles and responsibilities for schools and Student Support Services, and monitoring an IEP by using an IEP checklist. Professional development will be provided at every LTL this school year by Student Support Services. Additionally, Student Support Services provided a professional resource to adminstators, “A Principal’s Guide to Special Education,” published by Council for Exceptional Children.

• Provide professional development that focuses on Nevada Academic Content Standards to: o Deepen the understanding of teachers of the instructional practices and shifts in order

to teach the new standards, o Identify and use resources to deepen instructional alignment to the Nevada Academic

Content Standards, o Engage in collaborative inquiry to better support teacher planning, self-reflection, and

peer observations, and o Differentiate instruction for student access while aligned to Nevada Academic Content

Standards.


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By having a greater and more consistent presence in schools, Student Support Services will be able to provide focused professional development on major issues that schools are facing. This will be accomplished in two ways. First, by focusing on academic outcomes, Student Support Services is currently working with Stetson & Associates to provide targeted training to sites on inclusive practices and improving the educational success, including graduation rates for students with disabilities. This will continue throughout the school year. Secondly, Special Education Area Administrators (SEAA), Implementation Specialists and Executive Directors will be in schools on a daily basis to observe how students with disabilities are being educated and what supports are needed to help site staff to ensure students with disabilities are being exposed to grade level content.

Consistent and Frequent Instructional Support

Special Education Area Administrators’ and Implementation Specialists’ roles have been refined in the 2015-2016 school year. Their new role will be in classrooms daily, observing (non-evaluative), modeling, and ensuring strategies are consistently being implemented across classrooms and schools. Student Support Services staff will also provide support in professional development, compliance, and identification. Each school will receive direct support by Student Support Services staff at least once every 15 school days. Data will be collected, which will guide professional development and focused support. This focus is extremely important and aligns with feedback from both the WestEd report and the Teacher Town Hall meetings.

The third focus area in the WestEd report was Communication, with the following recommendation:

• Develop, enhance, and refine the district’s systems of communication so that all relevant stakeholders: receive timely, accurate information to increase their knowledge, skill, and efficiency in supporting students; are better prepared to engage in iterative opportunities to inform and influence the system; and experience conditions that lead to implementation of the district’s vision.

The Teacher Town Hall summary:

• Several participants commented that transition practices need to be improved to better support special education students’ movement from elementary school to middle school and from middle school to high school.

• Participants would like for ISs to have strong backgrounds in special education, to respond to questions in a timely manner, and to be physically present more often at their school sites.

• Although several district individuals were identified as effective communicators, a resounding complaint was there is not an effective process of information dissemination regarding special education.


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Additionally, the Teacher Town Hall summary identified four predominant suggestions to improve delivery of services within Student Support Services. Two of the four suggestions align with this reform:

• Improve communication between district-level staff and school-based personnel. Provide timely and accurate responses to requests for support, and offer immediate access to information and resources.

• Directly observe and participate in special education delivery at school sites. A repeated request made by participants was for district leadership and ISs to become familiar with the unique strengths and challenges of each school through increased site visits and classroom observations.

Student Transitions

Student transitions are an area of significant concern, which include when students transition from school to school, elementary to middle school, middle school to high school, and from high school to college or career. Student Support Services is working to improve transitions and has convened a group of stakeholders to develop a uniform system of expectations. Participants include school administrators (from all levels), counselors, special education teachers, classroom teachers, and families. Once uniform expectations have been identified, they will be placed in the Special Education Procedures Manual (reference below) for all schools, teachers, and families to access.

Inclusive Practice

According to Stetson & Associates, inclusive education means:

• All students are educated in the general education classroom to the greatest extent appropriate,

• Expectations are high, • Instruction is standards-based, • The curriculum is the general education curriculum, • Individualized supports are available when needed, and • Decisions are made on the basis of student needs and not labels and places.

Schools and staff will receive continuous and differentiated professional development that focuses on inclusive practices (taken from Stetson & Associates):

• Instructional setting must be individually determined, student by student, • General education classroom is the first consideration, • An array of options reviewed to make the general education classroom the most

successful location for services, and


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• Services outside of the general education classroom are considered when the IEP team determines the least restrictive environment for a student is outside of general education.

Identification of Students with Disabilities

To better align how students are being identified for special education, the WCSD school psychologists worked with the Coordinator of School Psychology and the Executive Director to develop identification templates that all psychologists must follow in consideration of any of the 13 disability categories.

• Autism • Deafness • Deaf-Blindness • Hearing Impairment • Emotional Disturbance • Intellectual Disability • Multiple Disabilities

• Orthopedic Impairment • Other Health Impairment • Specific Learning Disability • Speech or Language Impairment • Traumatic Brain Injury • Visual Impairment Including

Blindness

These templates directly follow the NAC and IDEA requirements for eligibility. Special Education Area Administrators, Implementation Specialists, and the Compliance training staff will be required to work with schools on a daily basis, including the provision of training in the identification process.

Using Rethink!

The Department of Student Support Services is expanding the use of Rethink! across WCSD. Specifically, Rethink! is a program that provides a system of information, monitoring, clinical support, best-practice tools, and research-based content.

• Promotes teachers’ use of data-based decision making for students’ individualized plans, • Promotes teachers’ use of research-based Applied Behavioral Analysis strategies for

addressing individual academic, behavioral, and other educational needs, • Provides a universal platform for measuring student progress on individual goals, • Provides high quality instruction to close the achievement gap and increase teacher

capacity, • Provides a universal platform for all team members to access current student programs

and professional development related to those student programs, • Monitors IEP goals once per week, • Monitors challenging behavior for student behavior intervention plans (more frequently

for severe behaviors), and • Provides accessible reports on IEP and behavior goals met according to observable

mastery criteria.


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Professional Development for Aides and Assistants

• In 2014-2015, WCSD and Student Support Services collaborated with High Sierra Industries to provide a 20-hour program for aides and assistants. Approximately 100 aides and assistants received training.

• In 2015-2016, training modules will be expanded to include instruction in Applied Behavior Analysis decision-making in addition to beginning training modules established.

• Student Support Services will work to train a minimum of 300 aides and assistants in the 2015-2016 school year in both the beginning aide and assistant training and Applied Behavior Analysis and decision-making. This will be accomplished through our community partnership with High Sierra Industries (HSI).

• Starting in January 2016, all newly hired aides and assistants will receive three days of onboarding and differentiated professional development as they begin their new assignment.

• Also starting in January 2016, current aides and assistants will be offered professional development opportunities during early release Wednesdays several times throughout the school year.


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4. Compliance

Compliance is the second focus area highlighted in the WestEd report, with the recommendation:

• Develop and implement a comprehensive compliance system as a mechanism to drive and monitor system performance pursuant to district, state, and federal requirements.

The WestEd report further identified how the lack of staff in the Department of Compliance negatively impacts schools.

• The lack of personnel in the Compliance Office influences the district’s ability to serve stakeholders and disseminate consistent information to school sites. Because of limited personnel and time, there is inconsistency among SSS Department personnel with regard to an understanding of established compliance practices and procedures, and in some cases, there may be a lack of established protocols or procedures.

In agreement with the WestEd report, teachers who attended the Teacher Town Halls expressed concern regarding the lack of compliance.

• Participants requested district leadership to recognize that compliance to IEPs is a systems issue, rather than placing blame on teachers for non-compliance.

Over the past six months, the most significant changes have been made by the Department of Compliance. There are currently three staff members supporting schools when in past years there were none. General compliance structures have been developed, along with focused monitoring. Most importantly, compliance staff is part of all professional development planning. This integration need was highlighted in the WestEd report:

• Without an integrated approach between compliance and high quality programming, instructional efforts and resource allocations will remain fragmented and disconnected from general education processes and whole system supports.

The Department of Compliance, in collaboration with teachers across the WCSD, has published a draft Special Education Procedures Manual, which will serve as a primary resource for teachers, schools, and families.

• The manual will be in draft form until spring of 2016, which will provide teachers, schools, and parents time to review the manual and provide input.

• The manual was highlighted at the October District administrative meeting, LTL, where every District administrator received a copy of the draft manual and professional

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development on how to use the manual. A copy of the procedure manual was also provided to participants at the Professional Learning Café in October.

• Additional chapters will be added to the manual throughout the next school year, including best practices and expectations on transitions.

• This procedure manual can be accessed at

http://www.washoeschools.net/Page/4433.

• The procedure manual will be maintained in an online form, allowing it to be updated, downloaded, and printed.

This work is supported by the WestEd report, which stated:

• A procedures manual would help facilitate an integrated approach to program planning, embedded in procedural compliant policies and instructional best practices. In the absence of such a document, Student Support Services personnel sometimes provide inconsistent information, resulting in site personnel feeling disconnected, and without clear guidelines.

General Compliance Structures

Professional development and monitoring will be embedded in all work under Student Support Services.

A comprehensive range of professional development will assist schools and staff with IEP creation, implementation, and data collection. Additionally, there will be mandated professional development at each of the WCSD bi-monthly administrator meetings (LTL’s).

Executive Directors and Special Education Area Administrators will conduct school monitoring informally through bi-weekly meetings. Compliance staff will conduct formal monitoring that focuses on IEP implementation that leads to academic success:

• Compliance staff randomly selects 30 schools each year to conduct a monitoring review of IEP files and effectiveness of IEP implementation. This will ensure that all WCSD schools will be reviewed once every three years.

• Student Support Services has created Focused Assistant Plans for schools that have recently been identified as being out of compliance, low academic achievement for students with disabilities or have experienced ongoing difficulty in implementing IEP’s with fidelity. Focused Assistance Plans will detail support and training specific to the needs of the school and will be provided by Student Support Services with the goal of remediating past concerns and meeting students’ needs. In addition, any school that is found to have a violation through the complaint process will go into a quarterly monitoring review for the remainder of that school year.

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• In response to parent and staff concerns, the Department of Compliance has developed procedures that incorporate a detailed review of the issue. When the Department of Compliance receives an inquiry or concern regarding services or IEP Implementation concerns, the department will investigate the issue and respond in a timely manner.

• In order to ensure consistent information and implementation, Student Support Services published a procedure manual outlining expectations and procedures in alignment with Nevada Academic Code and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act regulations on the WCSD website.

The Department of Compliance has developed and is in process of providing the following professional development activities:

• Easy IEP Basics Writing Clinic: These classes are for new special education teachers and focuses on IEP development that is aligned with state guidelines.

• LEA Responsibilities: These classes are for new administrators and focuses on roles and responsibilities for LEAs.

• Delving Deeper in Goals and Objectives: This is an intermediate level class for experienced teachers.

The Department of Compliance is also:

• Developing a library of online training modules that can be used by Student Support Services staff to assist schools in making the targeted corrections identified through the focused file monitoring.

• Facilitating the use of state purchased computer modules that have been created by a nationally recognized special education legal company. These computer modules offer intense training for participants and will be aligned with training provided by Student Support Services Staff.

• Creates a monthly training newsletter that highlights critical updates, tips on how to navigate the online computer system, as well as pivotal law cases that have impacted school districts around the country.

• Provides technical assistance professional development to middle school and high school department leads on a monthly basis.

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5. General Efforts for Students with Disabilities

Family Supports

Student Support Services is working to improve the number of family supports and is partnering with Nevada Parents Educating Parents (PEP) and the WCSD Department of Family-School Partnerships to provide high-quality programming. Listed below are examples of events scheduled in the 2015-2016 school year:

• Special Education Family Mini-Conferences o October 20, 2015 o March 8, 2016

Families participate in networking with other families, attend a short workshop on IEPs, transitions, and bullying. Families can also meet community partners who can provide resources for children and families.

• Community Listening o November 4, 2015

Families and community members shared input for continuous improvement to services for students with special needs. Staff shared updates about what is new with Student Support Services and the WCSD and then spent the remainder of the evening listening to ideas on how to improve special education in WCSD.

• Coffee, Tea, & IEPs

Seven workshops will be held throughout the 2015-2016 school year and are offered by Nevada PEP in partnership with the WCSD Parent University. This workshop includes an in-depth look at the IEP, including how to use evaluations to write measurable goals, as well as strategies to help parents become more active participants in their child’s IEP meetings.

Additionally, Student Support Services is gathering a committee of parents, staff, and community members in the 2015-2016 school year to develop a policy to define the vision, mission and beliefs for how the Washoe County School District supports students with disabilities. Community participation in this committee is essential.

Mental Health Supports

Due to the ongoing increase of students with mental health concerns, programming is being expanded in the 2015-2016 school year. By dedicating the entire Glenn Hare Building and expanding staff at Turning Point (a specialized program for students with mental health

General Efforts for Students with Disabilities

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disabilities), WCSD will be able to more than double capacity for students in need. Additionally, the following actions have been recently taken to improve services and supports for our students with mental health concerns:

• Dedicated a highly qualified, full-time WCSD administrator to supporting mental health efforts.

• Contracted with the University of Nevada, Reno Psychiatry department to provide psychiatric support to students in schools;

• Worked with the Children's Cabinet to provide counseling services to our students in Social Intervention Programs. In addition, a full-time Children’s Cabinet staff will be a liaison for families of students with mental health needs to and community agencies so supports are provided.

• Reorganized Social Intervention Programs (SIP) programs that have a balanced approach on academic and social/mental health interventions.

• Increased the number of Board Certified Behavior Analysts to help students with mental health needs in schools to be successful.

• Contracted with the UNR Behavior Analyst department to deploy behavior analyst interns to work with students who have mental health needs.

• Introduced monthly meeting with a team of community agencies to problem solve on how to better support students with mental health needs.

• Hold ongoing training for Social Intervention Program teachers. • Hold ongoing training for aides and assistants. • Partnered with WestEd to host professional development focusing on trauma-informed

practices.

There have also been changes in the staffing structure for both the Options Area and Student Support Services, to increase teamwork with a focus on providing effective support to students with mental health needs. This includes increasing the amount of Board Certified Behavior Analysts and Implementation Specialists who have experience working with challenging students.

These efforts align with feedback received at the Teacher Town Hall meetings:

• Mental health was repeatedly mentioned as a growing area of need and participants recognized that the continuum of services and training to staff must be expanded to meet this challenge.

Autism Spectrum Disorder Review

In the 2015-2016 school year, Student Support Services will conduct a comprehensive review and analysis on services for students specifically across the autism spectrum. This will be accomplished by:


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• Reviewing quality indicators from states that offer high quality programming and research based practices for students with autism, including New York and New Jersey school districts.

• Surveying parents of students with autism regarding quality of programming in the WCSD.

• Reviewing and comparing existing staffing, programming, and supports with other school districts that have similar population of students with autism.


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6. Partnerships

As stated previously, our community is the fifth spoke on the wheel of support for students with disabilities. Community agencies, non-profit organizations, and advocacy groups provide direct services to students and should be active partners in our District’s efforts to support the needs of students with disabilities. Listed below are partnerships with Student Support Services that are currently in place or will begin in the 2015-2016 school year:

• WestEd • UNR Psychiatry Department • The Children's Cabinet • UNR Behavior Analyst Department

• The Newton Center • Nevada PEP • High Sierra Industries (HSI) • Individuals with Disabilities Advisory Council (IDAC) • Best Buddies • Various WCSD Offices and Departments, including:

o Office of School Performance o Office of Academics o Office of Accountability o Business and Finance o Office of Communications and

Community Engagement o Human Resources o Equity and Diversity

Department o Family-School Partnerships

Department

o Department of Behavior Placements and Hearings

o School Police o Transportation o Plant Facilities o Counseling o MTSS/SEL o Child Family Services

Acknowledgements

All Children Matter was written by Student Support Services. Special thanks to the WCSD Board of Trustees, in particular Dr. Barbara McLaury, the Clark County School District, the Washoe Education Association, and our community partners for their encouragement and guidance. The WCSD would also like to extend thanks to the Nevada Department of Education for collaboration and continued dialogue as we strive to support students, families, and all schools. The WCSD looks forward to continued progress and expanded partnerships in the coming year.

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Documents

Reforms planned for special education system