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Commissioners approve memorandums of understanding for school mental-health and Project SEARCH partnerships
Summary
Cumberland County commissioners voted to approve a series of memorandums of understanding that formalize county-provided school behavioral-health services (CASP/ESAP) for 13 school districts and an updated Project SEARCH agreement with Goodwill Keystone Area Inc. and the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation.
Cumberland County commissioners voted to approve a series of memorandums of understanding on contracts that formalize county-provided school-based behavioral health services and an updated Project SEARCH agreement.
The approvals came during the July finance meeting after staff presented identical CASP (Child and Adolecent Social Services Program) and ESAP memorandums for each of the county’s 13 school districts and an existing Project SEARCH memorandum that involves Cumberland County IDD staff, Goodwill Keystone Area Inc. and the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR). The board moved and seconded the package and approved it by voice vote.
County staff said the school MOUs are identical for each district and asked the board to approve them together. Staff identified the 13 districts by name (Big Spring, Camp Hill, Carlisle, Cumberland Valley, East Pennsboro, Greenwood, Mechanicsburg, Newport, Shippensburg, South Middleton, Susquenita, West Perry and West Shore) and said a separate Project SEARCH MOU (alphabetized on the agenda) dates back to 2017 and is now being revised at OVR’s request.
Commissioners asked several questions about funding and program costs. Staff said the services are provided to the school districts at no direct charge; the county does not bill the districts for CASP/ESAP. Staff explained CASP/ESAP is funded through county Human Services block-grant allocations received from the state; final county spending levels depend on the state appropriation each year. Staff reported that last fiscal year CASP (the transcript reference used "CAASPP") cost about $714,465 and that the county has historically used block-grant dollars to support the work. The presenter also noted the county solicited school cost-sharing in the past but said those conversations have not resulted in payments from the districts.
Staff said the Project SEARCH MOU clarifies roles and responsibilities among county IDD staff, Goodwill Keystone Area Inc., and OVR and that the county solicitor has reviewed the documents and found them acceptable.
After the presentation a commissioner moved to approve all of the memorandums together; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote.
The approvals authorize continued county staff participation in school-based CASP/ESAP services and the Project SEARCH partnership, subject to final contract execution by county staff.
