Advantages of Special Education Cooperatives

Illinois State Advisory Council on the Education of Children with Disabilities

Committee of the Whole

December 10, 2008

Presented by:

Dr. Jim SurberISAC Board [email protected]

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Contributors

• Jim Surber, ISAC Board member, LADSE Executive Director

• Judy Hackett, NSSEO Superintendent

• Tarin Kendrick, NTDSE Executive Director

• Roxanne Kovacevich, LASEC Executive Director

• Michael McElherne, LASEC Executive Director

• Gineen O’Neil, SWCCCASE Executive Director

• Neil Sanburg, GCSEC Executive Director

• Tim Thomas, NSSED Superintendent

• Michael Volpe, SASED Executive Director

• Special Thanks to Northern Illinois Roundtable and the LADSE Executive Council

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Illinois Special Education Joint Agreements: A Partnership

How Many Joint Agreements?Sixty Seven Joint Agreements in Illinois

-27 Legal Entities-40 Administrative Districts

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Two Types of Joint Agreements

Legal Entity: Functions as a fiscal and legal entity. They must designate a governing board comprised of one member of the school board of each cooperating district and designated by such boards to act in accordance with the joint agreement.

Administrative District: One of the member districts must operate as the fiscal and legal entity. The articles of agreement define the role and responsibilities of the advisory board. The role can range from purely advisory to having regulatory authority over all financial and policy actions.

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History & Definition of Joint Agreements

1957 LaGrange Area Department of Special Education (LADSE) First Joint Agreement in the

State of Illinois

Joint Agreements are established by multiple Illinois school districts “to provide needed special education facilities and to employ a director and other professional workers” (105 ILCS 5/10-22.31) “for the purpose of providing comprehensive and cost efficient special education services” (Illinois School Code, 2006, p.281)

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Cooperatives provide progressive and visionary leadership through a collaborative partnership with the member school districts, parents, and communities to ensure the full continuum of specialized programs and services to meet the needs of all learners.

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Specialized Programs and Services1. Provide leadership and technical assistance in the development implementation, coordination and evaluation of instructional programs and related services

2. Maintain quality and consistency of programs and services shift resources/staff when needs change

3. Share resources within and across multi-district programs and other cooperatives

4. Best practices service delivery models for participating districts (inclusion, RtI, PBIS, etc.)

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Specialized Programs and Services cont.

5. Provide direction, training and assistance with new initiatives (RtI, PBIS, ASPIRE, etc.)

6. Provide a strong continuum of services (resource-to-residential)

7. Provide leadership and training with the transition process

8. Reduce the need for out-of-district placements

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Transition

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An Era of Accountability: A New Standard for Staff and Schools

“If there is NOT a scientific basis for what you are doing with your students, you should not be doing it.”

“You must be able to articulate the research that demonstrates that your methods have the greatest likelihood of producing positive student outcomes.”

Dr. Chris Koch, Illinois State Superintendent

Administration and Supervision

1. Provide parents with information regarding the range of programs and services

2. Facilitate compliance with state and federal regulations (expertise and Knowledge)

3. Recruit, employ, supervise and evaluate highly qualified staff

4. Provide technical support for data management (Aimsweb, SIS, DIBELS, SWIS, Harrisburg, Easy IEP)

5. Educate and inform parents and districts of local, state and federal requirements and initiatives 12

Administration and Supervision cont.

6. Develop child find, screening, and referral procedures

7. Complete initial evaluations and reevaluations

8. Facilitate procedurally correct of IEP meetings

9. Develop long range plans for future needs of the cooperative

10. Secure funding by filing state reports and claims

11. Prepare and administer a comprehensive budget

12. Negotiate and manage a collective bargaining agreement

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Specialized Personnel

1. Provide supervision and technical assistance for certified and non-certified staff

2. Share expertise of staff (AT, autism, behavior specialists)

3. Coordinate flexible assignments of personnel (fractions of FTE, short term leaves, etc.)

4. Develop and staff ESY programs (shared materials, equipment, space, staff, etc.)

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Specialized Personnel cont.

5. Provide and train specialized assessment teams (ECE, AT, low incidence)

6. Mentor, coach, and train new and existing staff to foster retention

7. Actively recruit highly qualified staff

8. Provide university practicum's, internships and student teaching placements for specialized personnel

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Rules and Regulations/Legal Issues

1. Inform parents and districts of state and federally mandated procedural requirements

2. Assist parents and districts with the interpretation and

application of legislation/rules and regulations 3. Assist parents and staff in conflict resolution

4. Chair procedurally correct IEP meetings

5. Support Timely and Meaningful Consultation and services to non-public parentally placed students

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Professional Development

1. Provide specialized training (AT, Autism, Behavior, RtI, etc.)

2. Allocate 5% of IDEA funds for Professional Development

3. Allocate 15% of IDEA funds for Early Intervening Services

4. Provide innovative, pertinent trainings for member district parents and staff

5. Partner with local cooperatives and member districts to pool resources in order to secure national expertise

6. Share knowledge of research-based best practices

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“The ultimate test of the value of special education is that, once identified, children close the gap with their peers.”(Presidents’ Commission, 2002)

Professional Development cont.

7. Collect, review, and distribute resources on scientifically-based interventions and materials

8. Provide CEUs/CPDUs for certificate renewal

9. Develop and provide parent workshops based on IDEA Needs Assessment

10. Provide training for data management systems (Aimsweb, DIBELS, SIS, SWIS, etc.)

11. Professional support networks for various disciplines (psychologists, SLPs, OT/PTs, nurses, administrators) 19

Cost Efficiency/Economy of Scale

1. Provide cost effective, fiscally responsible, high quality programs and services

2. Develop and manage the IDEA Part B Flow Through, Discretionary, and Pre-School Grants

3. Secure additional funding through Medicaid reimbursement 4. Reduce district special education expenditures by promoting

economy of scale through sharing costs (programs, administration, specialized staff, services, equipment, professional development and transportation)

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Cost Efficiency/Economy of Scale cont.

5. Maximize use of personnel to avoid duplication of services

6. Develop/maintain fiscally responsible cooperative programs to respond to the changing needs of students

7. Provide fiscal safeguards to maximize district reimbursements from federal and state sources.

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Contributors

• Jim Surber, ISAC Board member, LADSE Executive Director

• Judy Hackett, NSSEO Superintendent

• Tarin Kendrick, NTDSE Executive Director

• Roxanne Kovacevich, LASEC Executive Director

• Michael McElherne, LASEC Executive Director

• Gineen O’Neil, SWCCCASE Executive Director

• Neil Sanburg, GCSEC Executive Director

• Tim Thomas, NSSED Superintendent

• Michael Volpe, SASED Executive Director

• Special Thanks to Northern Illinois Roundtable and the LADSE Executive Council

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Thank You

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