Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Special Education topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Jefferson district reports preschool inclusion gains, proposes intensive support teams to reduce out‑of‑district placements
Summary
Director Cindy Price reported the district increased fully included preschool special education placements from 4% to 25% this year and proposed piloting intensive support teams (BCBA oversight, RBTs, a mental‑health clinician) funded initially with one‑time dollars to keep students in the least‑restrictive environment.
Cindy Price, Jefferson’s director of special education, told the board the district has materially increased inclusion for preschool students with disabilities.
"At the end of this school year last week, 25% of our preschool students receiving special education services were fully included in general education classrooms," Price said, describing a targeted improvement plan that exceeded a goal to raise inclusion from a 4% baseline.
Price highlighted professional development on neurodiversity and said the district is seeing more students whose social‑emotional, behavioral and trauma‑related needs are affecting school access. In lieu of creating more restrictive placements, Price proposed a pilot of intensive support teams that would be district resources able to move between schools to provide short‑term and ongoing support: a board‑certified behavior analyst (BCBA), registered behavior technicians (RBTs) or similarly trained paraprofessionals, and a mental‑health clinician for cases rooted in mental‑health needs.
Price said the pilot will start with contractors and one‑time funding because the district currently lacks RBT positions and a dedicated mental‑health clinician; staff will develop job descriptions for potential direct hires after the pilot. She emphasized the goal of keeping students in district schools and reducing expensive out‑of‑district placements.
Trustees asked about long‑term sustainability. Price and other staff responded the one‑time investment aims to build district capacity so future costs can be offset by reduced non‑public placement spending and fewer one‑to‑one contracted supports; the district plans to measure outcomes (discipline referrals, emergency responses, student engagement) and provide interim updates to the board while piloting the program.
The district said it is coordinating with union leaders and SELPA and will refine a referral and assignment process before full rollout.
