Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Sim Compliance topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
CDE accepts progress report; Amador SELPA outlines compliance improvements
Summary
The county SELPA reported CDE acceptance of its 2024 progress report and described a series of record-keeping, training and data-practice changes that reduced late‑timeline codes and blanks in special education timelines.
The Amador County SELPA gave the governing board an update March 12 on its compliance and improvement monitoring (SIM) work with the California Department of Education, reporting that the Department accepted the Unified School District’s 2024 progress report and that staff are drafting a new action plan for upcoming years.
Dr. Hedegaard (full name and title not specified in the transcript) told trustees the SELPA and county office were placed in the SIM process after CDE identified both the county office and the unified school district for monitoring in 2022. The SIM framework requires a local action plan and periodic progress updates; staff said they will present a new plan at a future meeting.
Hedegaard said the district has completed several corrective activities, including reworking its student file system, initiating an electronic database for historical files, training classified staff who manage records, and providing multi‑part, attorney‑supported training for staff on writing legally compliant IEPs. "A lot has changed since that time, including myself in my capacity and as well as other leadership positions," Hedegaard said, adding the current presentation was the last progress update on the 2022 plan and that staff will bring a new action plan next time.
The SELPA also reported measurable improvements in data practice: a targeted decrease in the use of the late‑timeline code (code 90) and a reduction in blank timeline codes. Hedegaard said code 90 usage decreased by about 26% and blank codes decreased by about 35% districtwide within a year; the ACUSD document shown in the presentation showed a drop in code 90 entries on the Unified School District side from 30 to 8.
Board members asked whether principals really met the bilingual/outreach language cited in the original 2022 plan. Hedegaard said the 2022 plan language reflected the original submission and could not be changed retroactively; staff have since funded bilingual aide positions, interpretation and translation and will correct language in the next plan.
The item was presented as information; no board action was required. Hedegaard said staff view SIM as a continuous improvement process and will return with a new action plan for the next period.
