2461 Special Education/Receiving Schools

[See POLICY ALERT No. 159]

2461 SPECIAL EDUCATION/RECEIVING SCHOOLS

To demonstrate compliance with N.J.A.C. 6A:14 and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the Board adopts policies and regulations/procedures that are required. These policies and regulations/procedures will be submitted with a Special Education Assurance Statement for Receiving Schools for Policies and Procedures to the County Office of Education no later than February 28, 2002 for approval.

1. Students with disabilities who are placed in a receiving school by a district Board of Education must have an Individualized Education Program (IEP) in effect prior to the delivery of services.

a. Procedures regarding the student’s IEP shall be developed and implemented to ensure that the receiving school determines whether the student’s IEP can be implemented in that setting prior to accepting the student [N.J.A.C. 6A:14-7.5(b)1]; and

b. The student’s teacher and, if appropriate, the student and other representatives of the receiving school will participate in meetings according to N.J.A.C. 6A:14-2.3(i)2.

2. The receiving school will collaborate with the sending district Board of Education in the provision of a free, appropriate public education for the population served including students with disabilities who are suspended.

a. Procedures regarding the provision of a free, appropriate public education to students with disabilities who are suspended will be developed and implemented to ensure that school officials responsible for implementing suspensions/expulsions in the receiving school are identified.

b. Each time a student with a disability is removed from his/her current placement for disciplinary reasons, notification of the removal is provided to the case manager of the sending district.

c. A system will be in place to track the number of days a student with disabilities has been removed for disciplinary reasons.

PROGRAM

2461/page 2 of 4

Special Education/

Receiving Schools

d. Suspension from transportation is counted as a day of removal if the student does not attend school.

e. Removal for a portion of the school day is counted proportionately.

f. If the receiving school has an in-school suspension program, participation in the program is not counted as a day of removal if the program provides the following:

(1) Opportunity for the student to progress in the general curriculum;

(2) Services and modifications specified in the student’s IEP;

(3) Interaction with peers who are not disabled to the extent they would have interaction with in the current placement; and

(4) The student is counted as present for the time spent in the in-school suspension program.

g. When a series of short-term removals will accumulate to more than ten school days in the year:

(1) School officials of the receiving school and the sending district case manager will consult to determine whether the removals create a change of placement according to N.J.A.C. 6A:14-2.8(b)2;

(2) Written documentation of the consultation between school officials and the case manager of the sending district will be maintained;

(3) If it is determined there is no change in placement, school officials and, the case manager of the sending district and special education teacher will consult to determine the extent to which services are necessary to:

(a) Enable the student to progress appropriately in the general education curriculum; and

PROGRAM

2461/page 3 of 4

Special Education/

Receiving Schools

(b) Advance appropriately toward achieving the goals set out in the student’s IEP.

(4) Written documentation of the consultation and services provided will be maintained.

h. Steps will be in place to review the behavioral intervention plan and if necessary convene the IEP team as required according to N.J.A.C. 6A:14 Appendix D, 34 C.F.R. §300-520(c)(1) and (2).

3. The compilation, maintenance, access to and confidentiality of student records will be in accordance with N.J.A.C. 6:3-6.

a. The IEP will be accessible to each teacher or service provider in accordance with N.J.A.C. 6A:14-3.7(a)2.

b. All student records will be returned to the sending district within fifteen calendar days of a student’s last day of enrollment.

4. Students with disabilities, who are placed in receiving schools by a district Board of Education, will be provided special education and related services at no cost to their parents or legal guardian(s).

5. The programs and services provided by the receiving school will be in accordance with the requirements of N.J.A.C. 6A:14-1.1 et seq.

a. If a change in the delivery of special education or related services is necessary due to a change in personnel or student need, the receiving school will contact the sending district to convene an IEP team meeting to review and, if appropriate, revise the IEP.

6. All personnel serving students with disabilities will be appropriately certified and licensed where a license is required as stated in N.J.A.C. 6:11.

7. The receiving school will terminate the placement of a student with disabilities according to N.J.A.C. 6A:14-7.7(a) and (a)1.

PROGRAM

2461/page 4 of 4

Special Education/

Receiving Schools

8. The in-service training needs for professional and paraprofessional staff who provide special education, general education or related services will be identified and appropriate in-service training will be provided. The receiving school will maintain information to demonstrate its efforts to:

a. Prepare general and special education personnel with the content knowledge and collaborative skills needed to meet the needs of children with disabilities;

b. Enhance the ability of teachers and others to use strategies, such as behavioral interventions, to address the conduct of students with disabilities that impedes the learning of students with disabilities and others;

c. Acquire and disseminate to teachers, administrators, school Board members, and related services personnel, significant knowledge derived from educational research and other sources and how the district will, if appropriate, adopt promising practices, materials and technology;

d. Insure that the in-service training is integrated to the maximum extent possible with other professional development activities;

e. Provide for joint training activities of parents and special education, related services and general education personnel; and

f. Procedures shall be developed and implemented to ensure that the training needs of paraprofessionals, professionals and parents of students with disabilities in the five specified areas are identified and met.

PROGRAM

R 2461.01/page 1 of 1

Special Education/

Receiving Schools – IEP

Implementation

Dec 01

[See POLICY ALERT No. 159]

R 2461.01 SPECIAL EDUCATION/RECEIVING SCHOOLS –

IEP IMPLEMENTATION

The receiving school district, in order to be in compliance with N.J.A.C. 6A:14, will provide all special education services to all special education pupils in accordance with New Jersey Administrative Code, the Individuals with Disabilities Act, Board Policies 2460 and 2461 and corresponding Regulations.

Students with disabilities who are placed in a receiving school by a district board of education must have an Individualized Education Program (IEP) in effect prior to the delivery of services.

A. Procedures for Ensuring the Pupil’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) Can Be Implemented

1. The following procedures will be used to ensure the student’s IEP can be implemented in the receiving school setting prior to accepting the student. [N.J.A.C. 6A:14-7.5(b)1]:

a. The _________________ (receiving district case manager, director of special services, receiving district child study team) in the receiving school district will review the IEP.

b. The receiving district will only accept the pupil if the ___________________________ (receiving district case manager, director of special services, receiving district child study team) determines the pupil’s IEP can be implemented. The receiving district will not accept the pupil if the ______________________ determines the receiving district cannot implement the IEP.

B. Meetings According to N.J.A.C. 6A:14-2.3(i)2.

1. The student’s teacher and, if appropriate, the student and other representatives of the receiving school, will participate in meetings according to N.J.A.C. 6A:14-2.3(i)2.

PROGRAM

R 2461.02/page 1 of 2

Special Education/

Receiving Schools – Suspension/

Expulsion

Dec 01

[See POLICY ALERT No. 159]

R 2461.02 SPECIAL EDUCATION/RECEIVING SCHOOLS – SUSPENSION/EXPULSION

A. Procedures for Collaboration For Pupils With Disabilities Who Are Suspended/Expelled

The receiving school will collaborate with the district Board of Education in the provision for a free, appropriate public education for the population served including students with disabilities who are suspended.

1. The ____________ is responsible for implementing suspensions/expulsions in the receiving school.

2. Each time a pupil with a disability is removed from his/her current placement for disciplinary reasons, the ____________ will notify the case manager of the sending district.

3. The Building Principal or his/her designee will have a system in place to track the number of days a student with disabilities has been removed for disciplinary reasons.

4. Suspension from transportation will be counted as a day of removal if the student does not attend school.

5. Removal for a portion of the school day will be counted proportionately.

6. If the receiving school has an in-school suspension program, participation in the program will not be counted as a day of removal if the program provides the following:

a. An opportunity for the student to progress in the general curriculum;

b. The services and modifications specified in the student’s IEP;

c. Interaction with peers who are not disabled to the extent they would have interaction with in the current placement; and

PROGRAM

R 2461.02/page 2 of 2

Special Education –

Receiving Schools – Suspension/

Expulsion

d. The student is counted as present for the time spent in the in-school suspension program.

7. When a series of short-term removals will accumulate to more than ten school days in the year:

a. The _____________ of the receiving school and the sending district case manager will consult to determine whether the removals create a change of placement according to N.J.A.C. 6A:14-2.8(b)2;

b. Written documentation of the consultation between school officials and the case manager of the sending district will be maintained by the _________________;

c. If it is determined that there is no change in placement, the _____________ of the receiving district, the case manager of the sending district and special education teacher will consult to determine the extent to which services are necessary to:

(1) Enable the student to progress appropriately in the general education curriculum; and

(2) Advance appropriately toward achieving the goals set out in the student’s IEP.

d. Written documentation of the consultation and services provided will be maintained by ______________ of the receiving district.

e. Steps will be in place to review the behavioral intervention plan and if necessary convene the IEP team as required according to N.JA.C. 6A:14 Appendix D, 34 C.F.R. §300-520(c)(1) and (2).

PROGRAM

R 2461.03/page 1 of 1

Special Education/

Receiving Schools –

Pupil Records

Dec 01

[See POLICY ALERT No. 159]

R 2461.03 SPECIAL EDUCATION/RECEIVING SCHOOLS – PUPIL RECORDS

A. Procedures to Ensure the Individualized Education Program (IEP) is Accessible

1. Procedures regarding student records will be developed and implemented to ensure that the IEP is accessible to each teacher or service provider in accordance with N.J.A.C. 6A:14-3.7(a)2.

2. The compilation, maintenance, access to and confidentiality of student records will be in accordance with N.J.A.C. 6:3-6. Access means the right to view, to make notes, and/or have a reproduction of the record.

3. All student records will be returned to the sending district within fifteen calendar days of a student’s last day of enrollment.

4. If the IEP is copied, the receiving district will be sure the IEP is kept confidential and is maintained according to N.J.A.C. 6:3-6.4(b). The IEP will be maintained in a central file at the school attended by the pupil and if the records are maintained in a different location, there will be a notation on the central file as to where such other records are located.

PROGRAM

R 2461.05/page 1 of 1

Special Education/

Receiving Schools –

IEP Compliance

Dec 01

[See POLICY ALERT No. 159]

R 2461.05 SPECIAL EDUCATION/RECEIVING SCHOOLS –

IEP COMPLIANCE

A. Procedures Regarding the Provision of Services Required by the Individualized Education Program (IEP)

1. The programs and services provided by the receiving school will be in accordance with the requirements of N.J.A.C. 6A:14-1.1 et seq.; and

2. If a change in the delivery of special education or related services is necessary due to a change in personnel or student need, the receiving school will contact the sending district to convene an IEP team meeting to review and, if appropriate, revise the IEP.

PROGRAM

R 2461.08/page 1 of 2

Special Education/

Receiving Schools –

In-Service

Training

Dec 01

[See POLICY ALERT No. 159]

R 2461.08 SPECIAL EDUCATION/RECEIVING SCHOOLS –

IN-SERVICE TRAINING

A. Procedures to Meet the Training Needs of Paraprofessionals, Professionals and Parents of Pupils with Disabilities

1. The in-service training needs for professional and paraprofessional staff who provide special education, general education or related services will be identified and appropriate in-service training will be provided. The receiving school shall maintain information to demonstrate its efforts to address training as defined in the five following areas:

a. To prepare general and special education personnel with the content knowledge and collaborative skills needed to meet the needs of children with disabilities;

b. To enhance the ability of teachers and others to use strategies, such as behavioral interventions, to address the conduct of students with disabilities that impedes the learning of students with disabilities and others;

c. To acquire and disseminate to teachers, administrators, school Board members, and related services personnel, significant knowledge derived from educational research and other sources and how the district will, if appropriate, adopt promising practices, materials and technology;

(1) The adoption of promising practices will be addressed through the review and dissemination by the school building curriculum committee, through turnkey trainings, presentations at Board meetings, Parent-Teacher Association meetings and other methods as determined by the receiving district.

PROGRAM

R 2461.08/page 2 of 2

Special Education/

Receiving Schools –

In-Service

Training

d. To insure that the in-service training is integrated to the maximum extent possible with other professional development activities; and

e. To provide for joint training activities of parents, special education, and related services and general education personnel [34 C.F.R. § 300.380].

2. The in the receiving district will conduct a needs assessment on an annual basis to identify the in-service training needs as part of the district-wide development activities.

3. The effectiveness of the in-service program will be evaluated at least once at the end of each year by a written survey administered and compiled by the .

4. Documentation of the needs assessment, training activities and evaluation procedures will be maintained by in the receiving district for three years after the activities are completed.