William Penn SD outlines steps to stabilize special-education staffing, PCA coverage and emotional-support services

William Penn School District staff updated the district's Education Committee on April 9 about follow-up steps after a recent Chester County Intermediate Unit (CCIU) audit, saying the district has moved to stabilize personal care assistant (PCA) coverage, improve medical-access billing (school-based access) and reconsider its emotional-support partnership.

The update matters because the issues affect students who receive related services (speech, occupational and physical therapy) and those who rely on PCAs and emotional-support programs; staff told the committee the work is intended to improve compliance, documentation and service consistency across district schools.

Kate Crossett, a district special-education staff member, described the school-based access program — often called medical-access billing — as “a way for schools to recoup funds for medical services or services outside of instruction that they provide to our students.” She said the district has met with the CCIU and its data coordinator to develop an action plan that focuses on five goals, including consistent log submission across buildings and stricter data review to maximize cost recoupment.

Nicole McKeown, a member of the special-education team, reviewed PCA management actions. She said the district has increased auditing and oversight, including weekly reviews of PCA arrival and sign-in protocols and regular checks of PCA documentation in individualized education programs (IEPs). McKeown said those reviews are intended to ensure accurate records of PCA hours and alignment of services with student needs.

McKeown provided historical fill-rate figures: a 93% PCA fill rate in November, a drop to 51% in March that the team attributed largely to the discontinuation of partnerships with specific vendors, and a recovery to about 92% in early April with current vendor arrangements. She said turnover and transient PCA staffing remain challenges that complicate training and consistent support for students.

On emotional-support services, staff said the district’s partnership with Stepping Stones began with 16 positions and was reduced to 12 this school year to improve consistency of providers. The district plans an RFP to consider other partners, and staff named prospective organizations such as GreenTree and Child Guidance Resource Center as examples of entities under consideration. A district presenter said the RFP will prioritize organizations with clinical expertise, highly trained staff and reliable data-collection practices.

Committee members raised questions about coverage across every school and the relationship between PCA management and emotional-support contracts. Crossett and McKeown said PCA management is a district responsibility and that emotional-support contractors would not necessarily supply PCAs; PCA assignments and reassignments are handled with district oversight and are ended if there are safety concerns. Crossett confirmed the district has scheduled and delivered PCA trainings (for example at Walnut Street) and planned additional trainings at Bell Avenue Elementary and other schools over the next month.

Dr. Vicoats and other committee members urged continued transparency and repeated updates. Dr. Vicoats said, “There is still more work to be done,” and asked that the district provide a timeline and regular updates as the audit recommendations are implemented. District staff said they will provide an additional update in May and continue reporting to the education committee through the remainder of the school year.

Staffers also noted that decisions about districtwide program locations and possible reduction of out-of-district placements are tied to facilities planning. Several presenters referenced the district’s Long Range School Facilities Master Plan, saying space constraints at schools such as Walnut, Evans, Alden and Ardmore limit the ability to relocate programs and therefore affect placement and transportation costs.

The committee did not take formal votes on these items during the April 9 meeting. Staff described ongoing work with the CCIU, implementation of training and auditing processes, development of an RFP for emotional-support partners, and continued monitoring of PCA fill rates and IEP documentation. The presenters said they would return with future updates as plans and procurements proceed.

Less critical details: staff said PCA turnover and time verification are persistent administrative burdens; the district is working with the CCIU to create a comprehensive PCA support plan ahead of the 2025–26 school year; and no dollar amounts for vendor contracts or out-of-district placement costs were provided during the meeting.