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Topeka schools approve MOU with KNI to provide residential and day services for students with intensive needs
Summary
The Topeka Public Schools board discussed and approved a memorandum of understanding with Kansas Neurological Institute (KNI) and the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services to place up to three district students on the KNI campus with district-provided staff; state funds will cover the district’s remaining teacher costs and KNI will提供d
The Topeka Public Schools Board of Education discussed and approved a memorandum of understanding to place students with intensive neurological and developmental needs on the Kansas Neurological Institute campus and to provide related services, board members said.
District officials said the arrangement will place up to three USD 501 students at KNI and that the district has hired an additional teacher who will be located at KNI. "We're going to collect the categorical aid and federal aid for that teacher, and the state of Kansas is going to pay the remainder," a district official said, adding that the arrangement will result in no net cost to the district for that teacher.
The board heard from Scott Bruner, deputy secretary for the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services, who said KNI historically served a much different population and now can expand services. "We're starting slow and small," Bruner said, describing KNI's ability to train staff and provide residential capacity for school-age children with complex medical and developmental needs. He said the partnership aims to free up capacity at other state facilities and provide additional options for children already in the district.
Board members asked whether placements would be residential and whether day programs were possible. Bruner and district staff said the plan will include residential placements — students living on campus with 24-hour supports — and the partners are exploring a day program as an alternative for students who do not need residential care.
District staff said the program will be implemented under an MOU that was on the agenda for approval. They described the partnership as a three‑way arrangement among USD 501, KNI and the state department, with the district supplying a specially trained teacher and the state covering the remaining costs after federal and categorical aid. A district official also said KNI will provide free dental care to children who attend the campus and that KNI has agreed to open dental appointments for other USD 501 students with intense needs.
The board approved the consent agenda that included the KNI MOU (see 'Votes at a glance'), after motions earlier in the meeting to adopt the consent items with one contract (item 13.1) pulled for further review.
Board members and administrators described the partnership as addressing a shortage of placements for children with very intense clinical and neurological needs, noting a waiting list for other state facilities. District officials said qualifying students currently in the district will be able to access services at KNI once the MOU is finalized and staffing is in place.
A district special education leader said the program will be located at KNI and the district will provide the staff person; once the MOU is executed the program will start. Officials emphasized the screening process for these placements is extensive and that only students who meet the clinical criteria will be placed there.
The board discussion included praise for the partnership and appreciation to state officials who worked on the plan. No additional board action specific to the KNI program was taken beyond approval of the consent agenda item that included the MOU.
The board did not vote separately on the MOU during discussion; the MOU was part of the consent items the board approved with the exception noted in the record.
