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Garrison School's Committee on Special Education Discusses Referral Process
by Margaret Sternberg
Most of the February 7, 2007 meeting of the Garrison Board of Education was devoted to a presentation by the Committee on Special Education ("CSE") on the sequence of events and referral process through which a child is evaluated for possible placement in Special Education.
Ann Brennan, Coordinator of Special Services for the Garrison School, presented an overview of the process, which begins with a written referral by a member of the school staff, a parent or a judicial officer.
The Committee on Special Education then notifies the parents in writing, assuming the referral does not come from the parents, that there has been a referral. The letter describes the evaluation, what assessments will be done for the student, requests the consent of the parent for the evaluation and gives the parents a list of their rights.
Once the parents give written consent, the CSE Chairperson arranges for an evaluation of the child. A social history is taken, and an educational and a psychological evaluation as well as a classroom observation are made. These are the minimum components of an evaluation and more information may be included.
A Committee meeting is then held within 60-calendar days of parental consent. The members of the Committee include the classroom teacher, the psychologist, the Special Education teacher, the Chairperson, and the parents of the student involved. An optional additional parent-member, who has a child in Special Education, is required to be there to assist the parents; however, that is an option that can be waived by the parents of the child who is being evaluated.
Brennan noted that, prior to this meeting; all of the specialists meet with the parents to review their findings so that none of the findings come as a surprise. At the meeting recommendations are made that are aligned with state and federal regulations. If the CSE determines that a pupil is not eligible for Special Education, the CSE provides notice to the parents and the Board of Education. The CSE also notifies the principal of their findings and their recommendations for remedial services for the child.
If the pupil is found to be eligible, the CSE develops an Individual Education Plan ("IEP") that is tailored to the child and notifies the parents and Board of Ed of the findings. The IEP covers the kinds of services being provided, the kind of program and its goals and objectives, and how and when the program will be evaluated. The CSE implements the IEP within 60-days from consent. There is an annual review of the program and a re-evaluation every three years to determine continued eligibility.
Brennan was followed in her talk by individual Committee members, who discussed the specifics of their evaluation process as well as the development of an IEP for a fictitious child.
In addition to discussion of the process, Brennan noted that the records on a Special Education child are restricted to only people dealing with the child and that the education of Special Education children is now done within the classroom setting, whereas formerly the children had been taken out of the class for their instruction; a change, she said, that has been extremely beneficial for the child.
At the conclusion of the presentation Trustee Marilyn Palefsky appeared to express everyone's reactions when she said, "What is so wonderful and loud and clear is how focused they are on what is best for the child and how all the adults bring in their information and expertise together for what is best for the child."
Superintendent Gloria Colucci said that the amount of support given in grades K- 2 was very important, noting that children who receive academic intervention services earlier have a better chance of "bringing themselves up to where they should be functioning by the time they are in third or fourth grade, and it minimizes the number of children who are classified at the third, fourth and fifth grade level."
In other business, the Board heard a brief Budget Advisory Committee report. Superintendent Colucci did not address many specifics, it being early in the process, with only very preliminary numbers.
Colucci said some budget reductions were already being contemplated, such as the sharing with Haldane of BOCES technical support for the computers. However, she noted that the health insurance plan cost is expected to rise by 12 percent and that the school is about to go into negotiations with the teaching and school-related personnel.
Colucci said that, in developing the numbers, the school is mindful of community feelings in light of recent county and town tax increases and will try to present a "reasonable" budget.
The next meeting of the Garrison Board of Education will be Wednesday, February 21, at 7pm.
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