The next Special Education Leaders’ Meeting will be held on Friday, November 19th, from 1:00 to 2:00 PM. Content will include:
DESE special education updates.
The evaluation component of the Referral, Evaluation, and Eligibility Guidance.
Technical Assistance Advisory SPED 2021-3: Shared Responsibility for Special Education Services in Institutional Settings (SEIS).
The Zoom link for this meeting will be sent to Special Education Leaders in a separate email.
IDEA Equitable Services Child Count: Planning for FY22-FY23
With the December 1 Child Count quickly approaching, we are providing you with a few reminders.
Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), each public school district must expend a proportionate share of funds received under Part B of the IDEA (funds received under both sections 611 and 619 of the IDEA) from each year's allocation to provide special education and related services (including direct services) to parentally-placed private school children with disabilities enrolled in private elementary schools and secondary schools located in the district served by the public schools including home schooled students.
In Massachusetts, district-approved homeschooled students are considered private school students.
The state-designated Child Count window is between October 1 and December 1 for the age ranges of 3 through 5 and 6 through 21. The child count is the number of eligible students who are privately enrolled or home schooled and educated within the district, not the number of such students receiving services. For the home schooled students, the district where they live will be the same as the district where they attend school.
Child count includes:
students who live in the district and attend a private school in the district;
students who live outside the district but attend a private school in the district;
students who live in the district and are home schooled in the district; and
out-of-state students who attend a private school located in the district.
Because the 240 grant (IDEA Section 611 funds) and the 262 grant (IDEA Section 619 funds) are two separate sources of federal funds made available to the states to assist them in providing special education and related services to children with disabilities, districts need to conduct a separate proportionate share child count and calculation for preschool population, students ages 3-5 under the supplementary 262 grant.
Students ages 3-5 are also included in the proportionate share child count and calculation under the 240 grant for ages 3-21.
Who are the eligible children?
Eligible preschool-aged children that are enrolled by their parents in private, including religious and independent, schools or facilities in the district that meet the definition of an elementary school are included in the district’s child count under both Fund Codes 240 and 262.
Stand-alone private preschools or private childcare centers do not meet the elementary school definition; eligible preschool-aged children attending those programs are not included in the district’s proportionate share child count under either grant.
Students with expired IEPs or Evaluations or those that are not receiving special education services on December 1st will not be counted.
Why is it important for school districts to collect Child Count data?
Child Count determines the number of students for the proportionate share calculation submitted in the subsequent year's IDEA grant applications (240, 262). In addition, the number of parentally-placed private school children with disabilities and homeschooled students is used to determine the amount that the public school district must spend on providing special education and related services to parentally-placed private school children and homeschooled with disabilities in the subsequent year.
For example, a public school district would calculate the proportionate share for funds received on July 1, 2022, based on its child count from December I, 2021. This amount would be the proportionate share to be expended during the 2022-2023 school year (or during the carry-over year) for special education and related services to parentally-placed private school children with disabilities.
In a timely and meaningful way, each public school district must consult with private school representatives and representatives of parents of parentally-placed private school children with disabilities during the design and development of special education and related services for parentally-placed private school children. The consultation process must include a discussion of how that process will operate throughout the school year to ensure that parentally placed private school children with disabilities can meaningfully participate in special education and related services. For example, the process could include conversations about changes that may need to be made based on fluctuations in the population of students to be served, including the issue of children who are identified during the school year in which the expenditures are being made.
Stakeholder Input on State Performance Plan/Annual Performance Report (SPP/APR) Targets
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires each state to submit a state performance plan/annual performance report (SPP/APR) to the federal government. Periodically, Massachusetts is required to set new targets for the SPP/APR's performance indicators. DESE and the Federation for Children with Special Needs are co-hosting a series of virtual meetings so that the public can give feedback on DESE's proposed targets. Members of the public are invited to join us from 5 - 6 PM on these dates:
November 30 - Indicator 7 (Preschool Skills)
December 1 - Indicators 1, 2, & 14 (High School and Beyond)
December 3 - Indicator 3 (Statewide Assessment)
December 8 - Indicator 8 (Parent Involvement)
December 10 - Indicators 5 & 6 (Student Placements for Ages 3- 22)
DESE reminds Local Education Agencies (LEAs) that all children with disabilities ages 3 through 21 residing in Massachusetts, including children with disabilities who are in foster care, homeless, homeschooled, or attending private schools, regardless of the severity of their disability, and who are in need of special education and related services, must be identified, located, and evaluated.
Child find must include children who are suspected of being a child with a disability and in need of special education, even if they are advancing from grade to grade. For more information about federal child find requirements, please see the United States Department of Education’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), Return to School Roadmap: Child Find Under Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (Aug. 24, 2021)(Child Find guidance).
IDEA Part B also requires each LEA to “locate, identify, and evaluate all children with disabilities who are enrolled by their parents in private, including religious, elementary schools and secondary schools located in the school district served by the LEA.” In accordance with IDEA regulations, the child find activities for such children must be similar to the child find activities undertaken for the LEA’s public school children. For more information about child find requirements relating to privately enrolled children with disabilities, including homeschooled students, please see the DESE website, which includes Administrative Advisory SPED 2018-1 and sample child find notices for privately enrolled students.
Massachusetts is hosting a series of disability-friendly vaccination events across Massachusetts. These events will have extra staff on hand to provide skilled support to people with disabilities and/or sensory support needs. Most of these events will be offering COVID vaccinations for children ages 5 and up, as well as adult initial vaccines and boosters. Both people with and without disabilities can get vaccinated – including the whole family ages 5+ or staff that may come supporting people with a disability.
DESE requires districts to update and submit a Special Education Program Plan Statement (SEPPS) every four years to ensure regular renewal of special education assurances and information. The submission and subsequent approval of this updated SEPPS is required for initial or continued receipt of any federal special education funds.
In Case You Missed It
Educational Stability Resources
DESE offers Educational Stability office hours and training resources to support homeless liaisons; foster care points of contact; and Department of Children and Families (DCF), district, and provider staff to ask questions, discuss current issues, and share best practices for supporting highly mobile students and their access to a public education. Office hours and training are scheduled through the 2021- 2022 school year: https://www.doe.mass.edu/sfs/edstability/training.html.
