Staffing Special Education Positions forBenton Stearns Education DistrictSupervision of Special Education

EDAD 609

Margy Bailey

Benton Stearns Education District

Purpose is to increase coordination and cooperation among member districts

Education District Board applies, receives, and administers funding on behalf of member districts

Member Districts: Foley, Holdingford, Kimball, Rocori, Sartell, Sauk Rapids/Rice

Approximate total student population: 13,000 Duane Borgeson – Special Education Director

Benton Stearns Education District Services

Assistive Technology Child Count Day Treatment Early Childhood Intervention Interagency Programs Level IV Low Incidence Programs Physical and Occupational Therapists School Psychologists Special Education Coordination Services

Determining Staffing Needs

Determining factors vary by position Workload Analysis Minnesota Department of Education caseload

limit requirements Perceived or expressed needs of member

districts

Workload Analysis

Can be done using Sped Forms, an internet server-based program for special education due process and paperwork

Can be a formula developed by an administrator, group or team. ex. Occupational and Physical Therapists, School

Psychologists. Can be compared to other education districts in

the region

Minnesota Department of Education

Manual for Early Childhood Intervention Caseload Limits

Birth to Two – 12-14 children per IFSP manager

Reductions in Staff

Shifts in workload and FTE are made Frequently works out “naturally” Requires/allows flexibility

Reductions of FTE of a position are made if necessary

Often times not an issue

Increases in Staff

Review job description and revise as needed (team)

Advertise position (administrator) Review/screen resumes and applications

(administrator and/or team) Interview (team) Make selection (team) Board approval board makes final decision

Role of Special Education Director

For Education District Listening to teams/employees Reviewing workloads and district needs Gathering information Reviewing job Screening applicants Hiring team Presenting information to Board

For Member Districts Advising districts Gathering information and helping check references

Example of Increase in Staff

Team of School Psychologists expressed need

Districts expressed need Workload analysis and information

gathering Board Presentation Board suggestion and approval

School Psychologists Expressed Need

Disproportionate numbers of evaluations New criteria for three Disability Areas effective

2001 Autism Spectrum Disorder Emotional/Behavioral Disorder Other Health Disability

Additional evaluation requirements Functional Behavioral Assessment

Increase in required meetings effective 2000 District Feedback

Districts Expressed Need

Overall increasing enrollment Increased number of Special Education

Teachers High percentage of Special Education students

in some districts High numbers of students tested for Special

Education not qualifying indicating need for stronger pre-referral process

High ratio of students to School Psychologist

Workload Analysis: School Psychologists Caseloads by Evaluation Numbers

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Workload Analysis: Caseloads by Population ‘99-’01

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Information Gathering

Change in criteria for three disability areas was resulting in an increase of comprehensive evaluation load of school psychologists by 20%

Timelines for completion of evaluations were clarified and tightened

Districts wanted help improving their pre-referral processes and wanted more consultation time

Information Gathering

School Psychologists, Special Education Teachers and Administrative Staff felt that psychologists time was spread too thin

Ratio of student population to Psychologist (2166:1) was higher than the state and national average and much higher than the National Association of School Psychologists recommendation (1000:1)

Board Presentation

Special Education Director and Assistant director presented data and information at May 2002 board meeting

Director and Assistant Director offered options for funding additional School Psychologist time

Board Recommendation

Adding one School Psychologist position to the Education District would only be putting a “band-aid” on the problem

Board approved the addition of two School Psychologist positions

School Psychologists Caseloads by Evaluation Numbers

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School Psychologist Caseloads by Evaluation Numbers

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Caseloads by Population - Current

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Caseloads by Population – ’99-’00 and Current

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Pros

Considering caseload and workload information from a number of different angles helps to create a clearer picture

Soliciting District input increases “customer satisfaction”

Monitoring of evaluation and population changes and district needs improves service to students

Cons

Workload and caseload analysis is time consuming and not exact

Populations increase and decrease District needs increase and decrease Changes in assignments of staff results in

instability for districts Needs frequent analysis