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Competency 14. Policy & Law - Special Education

a. Demonstrate an understanding of state and federal laws, rules and procedures governing special education finance, budgeting and accounting

b. Understand state and federal regulations governing the monitoring of Special Education programs

Reflection: Policy and Law- Special Education

Ruth Paisley, Spring 2011

Special education services are available due to the creation of the Education of the Handicapped Act in 1975. The latest reauthorization of this law was in 2004 and is the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 2004. In Minnesota, State Statute Chapter 125A and Rule 3525 further guide the implementation of special education services in school districts.

Policy and law are embedded in the special education process from the very beginning of child find procedures to the evaluation criteria which qualifies a student for services, to where and how services are provided, to graduation and transition plans. The law also requires compliance with due process procedures since the public education of a student is changed through the special education process. There is further accountability required for the revenue generated and how expenditures are made with the federal funds.

In Fall 2009, the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) visited the Minnesota Department of Education for a data verification visit. States are required to collect data on Federal Indicators of compliance and program improvement for the State Performance Plan (SPP) and this visit was for the purpose of verifying Minnesota’s data and providing assistance if necessary. Two years later the resulting guidance is continually being implemented.

One of the artifacts from my internship is the procedures developed by the Director of Special Education for the expenditure of staff requested funds for materials. With new accountability procedures at the State level school districts need to be able to show the links between the funds spent and the provision of special education services as outlined in the Individualized Education Plan. This process was clarified at a Director’s Forum in Fall 2010. Expenditures including staff are now requested by school districts through a grant process on a new system called SERVs Financial.

Another area of fiscal management is the Third Party Billing required of school district special education departments. Several years ago the federal government set aside medical assistance funds specifically for school districts to collect reimbursement on IEP health related services. In districts with high numbers of students on Medical Assistance this is a very systematic process and all health related service providers routinely complete this process. In smaller or district with fewer students with Medical Assistance this is challenging as a training issue since the process is used infrequently. The Third Party Billing powerpoint presentation is used in Stillwater district to train all staff in each building in the District procedure for this required billing process.

The State Performance Plan also guides school district special education departments in a process called CIMP (Continuous Improvement and Monitoring of Progress). Special education department data is collected and reported on each State Performance Plan Indicator. This information is posted on the MDE website as District Performance Data. The District CIMP process analyzes the data for the level of need for the District to improve and a plan is made annually for this improvement. Through a five year cycle of due process compliance self-review and correction years are rotated with an on-site audit every five years by MDE. I have served on the Saint Paul CIMP committee for several years and last Spring presented the attached Powerpoint presentation outlining the Early Childhood Special Education Birth to 5 data and plan.

Policy and law dictates licensure requirements and the competencies of all staff and the caseload limits for some staff as well. This impacted the budgeting, staffing, and teacher performance reviews when I was working as a supervisor for the Saint Paul Special Education Department. The last artifact provided shows the role of the Early Childhood Special Education teacher and case load limits of some special education teachers, including Early Childhood Special Education according to Minnesota Statute.

Special Education policy and law is complex and continually changing. As a special education leader it is important to know your resources, such as the MDE Director Forums, the Minnesota Administrators of Special Education professional organization (MNASE), and law publications and conferences provided throughout the State. Special Education law also interfaces with regular education law and Department of Human Services. It is important for special education leaders to use their team, know the resources, and network to stay current in this competency.