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Board moves to comply with new state special-education rules; approves vendors and first reading of restraint/isolation policy
Summary
Responding to new state laws, the board approved contracts to add translation capability for IEPs and to renew vision and speech-language services, and took first reading of a restraint/isolation policy to align district practice with House Bill 1795.
The Prosser School District board took a series of actions and first readings intended to align special-education services and procedures with recent state legislation.
Dr. Jennifer Allen, director of Special Services, told the board the district currently serves 347 special-education students with a staff of 65 and outlined training completed this year, including staff instruction in crisis prevention and de-escalation (‘‘Mant’’ training) and transition IEP training. She said districts must update policies and operational processes to comply with recent legislation.
Policy and statutory background: administrators described two state measures driving the work. House Bill 1795 tightens rules around restraint and isolation and strengthens review and prevention requirements; RCW 28A.648.5 requires districts to adopt policies that use the least-restrictive interventions necessary to protect safety. The board approved a first reading of policy 3247 to clarify definitions, outline prohibited practices and set notification and review procedures. Trustees asked staff to revise procedure language regarding parent notification timing; staff said procedures, not the policy, will be adjusted.
Contracts and vendor approvals: the board approved an add-on translation feature for the district’s special-education platform so families can receive evaluation drafts in their home language before meetings, a change motivated by House Bill 2557. Staff said the add-on will be active for 2026–27 and billed annually; staff indicated the expected vendor cost discussed during the meeting (the transcript references a district estimate commonly discussed in the range of $12,000 for the translation add-on for typical district needs). The board also approved renewing the contract with Riveridge Vision Services for visually impaired students at the same rate as the current year and approved a contract with Happy SLP LLC to provide speech and language services next school year.
Board concern and oversight: trustees asked to avoid surprise budget overruns on vendor invoices and requested that staff monitor billing closely and return to the board if costs begin to exceed projections. For the contracted speech-language services the superintendent committed to monthly invoice reviews and to report back if billing materially deviates from estimates.
What’s next: Staff will implement the translation add-on for 2026–27, finalize contractor agreements and return with any procedure edits and budget updates as required. Policy 3247 will return for a second reading with clarified procedure language.
