Low staffing causes slow testing

Dec. 24—In Ector County ISD’s world of Special Services, fall is the busiest time of year and the department is short staffed slowing the testing process.

There are five vacancies for diagnosticians and four for the ARD facilitator-to-diagnostian pipeline. Three of the three vacant positions will be filled soon.

There are also five open positions for Speech Language Pathology Assistants, one vacant Speech Language Pathology position and one vacant Speech Language Pathology Intern position.

Through collaborative efforts with the campus staff, diagnostician, and ARD facilitator, the ARD facilitator assists in the Admission, Review, and Dismissal meetings of students receiving special education service in the district.

The Texas Education Agency reports that there are three outstanding special education complaints regarding Ector County ISD. A spokesman for the agency stated in an email that the matter(s), which remain ongoing, has three remaining.

We are more short of speech therapists than diagnosticians so we contract both for speech and diags. Retired people are often our clients. They may return to work part-time or just contract as contractors. We have also contracted with virtual assessment personnel, so I am contracting with them for some of the testing. On the speech side, we do the exact same thing. So we really do the same thing on both sides —contract with real people, contract with virtual people,” Executive Director of Special Services Leslie Wilson said.

They also pay employees who work weekends to run tests.

Four diagnosticians are currently in training. Wilson stated that one of the four diagnosticians has passed the test, and that two more will be taking the exam after the holidays.

Wilson stated, “Those three will go up to the diagnosticians filling three positions.” “We’re using ESSER Funds (Elementary & Secondary School Emergency Response) funds to fill this pipeline. This means that we have applicants for the vacancies we’ll have once those ARD facilitators get up.

ARD stands to Admission, Review and Dismissal Committee. According to the Texas Education website, it is the team that determines eligibility based upon a complete and individual evaluation report and develops an individualized education plan (IEP), for the child.

Wilson claimed that her department did not have to contract for licensed school psychiatrists.

We have four of them and one vacant, so we don’t have to contract on that. Wilson stated that we do have an opening for special education counselor. We are working with a company to provide virtual counseling.

Early childhood intervention is a great way to catch children with autism and other disabilities before they start school. ECI is not covered by Special Services. However, Special Services can refer you to them.

“We usually pick up the kids when they enroll at Carver or West (Elementary) and we’re able to assess them. This is how they get to Carver (Early Education Center) and West (Elementary). … If they have older children, it’s a special education referral. This allows us to get information about the parents, teachers, and health of the child. Wilson stated that the packets are filled out and sent to us. We then assign a licensed school psychologist who will conduct the evaluation.

Parents may also request in writing that their child is tested. The Response to Intervention process may be used to place children at the request of the principals.

RTI is continuous intervention that helps a child learn skills. A child who does not have these skills will be referred for special education.

“We hope they grow when they get that intervention, but if they don’t that’s usually the students that end up being referred to special ed because no matter what we do in the classroom — whether it’s small group or we’ve got a program off to the side we’re using … the kid never seems to be able to make progress. Wilson explained that these are the students who will transfer to special ed.

All requests must be in writing

“They must have all information in writing so that they can request an assessment for their child. We adhere to all federal and state guidelines. We must reply to parents within a set timeframe if they ask. The paperwork goes through our referral procedure. They still have to fill out that paperwork — the parent information, teacher, health. We don’t want the child to wear glasses or have difficulty reading. Wilson stated that we have 45 days to test the child after we get parental consent. Then we have 30 more days to do the ARD.

Because children are not automatically placed in programs, there is an ARD.

Wilson stated that it all depends on whether they are eligible; if their eligibility criteria are met. The ARD then makes the final decision.

Special Services is available to around 3,400 students. Hundreds more are available for testing.

“We get around 25 referrals per semaine. I’d say that we have between 400 and 500 referrals per week. That’s a pleasant side,” she stated.

Wilson also stated that the staff is busier during the fall than in spring.

“Typically, we complete more assessments in spring than in fall due to STAAR and other such things. Each year, we get a lot more referrals. We feel like we have caught up to the end. And then it starts all over again. Wilson stated that it’s a never-ending circle.

Many campuses offer special education services.

“There are many autistic children in the district. Some campuses have more restricted placements, so autistic children will have a teacher who is trained in autism. Our schools are arranged with sister schools so that if a child is unable to receive the support they need, they can transfer to a sister school with an autism-specialist teacher. Because we have special educators, such as me, who have the training and experience to work with special ed kids, we try to keep these children on their home campus. Wilson explained that there are rooms available for kids who have more severe behavior problems or are more aggressive. They can be helped and reintegrated to their home campus after they’ve received intervention. However, sometimes they don’t.

On the early childhood campuses, licensed school psychiatrists and speech therapists collaborate.

“We have special classrooms for autistic children so they get in early. Wilson stated that we hope to catch them when they arrive at 3 – which is usually the case.”

School psychiatrists are licensed to diagnose autism and emotional disturbance. Diagnosticians evaluate for learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities, and dyslexia.

If you are worried about your child, or believe something might be wrong, call Special Services at 432-456-88779.

“We have Child Find online. At the beginning of each year, we give out Child Find flyers. However, if they don’t want to receive them, they can call our office and we will get them in touch. Wilson explained that any parent who is concerned about their child would call us to walk them through the process.

“We ask them to fill out an intake form. This allows us to get a sense of their feelings and what they see. From there, we can make a decision about where to take our research. However, we can assess in any suspected area. This includes areas of autism and intellectual disabilities. Sometimes children are not eligible or don’t meet eligibility. However, parents may be concerned. … Certain things are learned by children, and certain sounds are made at specific grade levels. This is called a growth chart. Parents might worry that their child has not reached the point where they are able to learn this sound. … Some children can say the R quickly, while others take longer. Wilson explained that it takes a while to master all sounds. But speech therapists have the ability to do this quickly.

Wilson was asked if they would retaliate against callers who call too often and he said no.

“If parents are concerned, we complete an intake form. We have many kids who are not in school and we test them. Wilson explained that kids who are already in school and those who have come from other places that we transfer… we must provide comparable services to what they’ve received before.

“We keep all documents. We still use paper. “We do electronic, but we still have paper for emergencies,” she said.

Parents who are worried about their children should have them tested immediately.

“Like I said we have the 45- and 30-days by law. Are we willing to spend all that time? Wilson explained that while we do not want to waste time getting them assessed, Wilson noted that there are many children to assess so sometimes it takes more than we want.

Special services are available for children aged 3-21. Children who are hard of hearing or deaf are adopted as babies.

If your child is deaf or hard of hearing, you can start services at age 3. Wilson explained that Wilson’s team will be involved sooner with this.

Different factors may be considered in order to treat different disabilities.

“We look at intelligence first, and then adaptive behavior. Can they tie their shoes? Can they do certain tasks independently? We have to see certain criteria before we can say they meet the criteria. However, that is what diagnosticians are trained to do. Wilson stated that every eligibility has its own criteria.

They accept students with multiple disabilities.

“The student must be eligible to receive special education and have the ability to pay for special education. They need to be able to use our services to make progress in school. Some children will meet all the criteria while others won’t.

As adaptive behavior requires, they must meet two to three. We look at certain things to be sure.

She said that while we are cautious about labeling children, we want them to be able to access the services.

Wilson said that the Admission Review and Dismissal panel includes the principal, parent, general education teacher, and special education teacher. Wilson also mentioned that any teacher with information that could help the student should be present at the meeting.

So if the student is visually impaired, we would have a VI person there. We would also have a member of our behavioral team if a student has behavior concerns. Wilson explained that Wilson will also invite other people if they have the right information to help the student.

She explained that the ARD considers health history, testing, classwork, as well as the student’s test results.

“They take in all the information provided by the parents before making a decision. Wilson stated that there is a page where they can sign their agreement that they were there.

Every year, we must have an ARD meeting for every special ed student. If they are coming from Amarillo, we have a timetable. They must meet with an ARD and agree to a time frame when they arrive. Each child has a meeting once a year with ARD. Some children have more than others, depending on what they are due. For example, a three-year evaluation is required because we reevaluate the student every three. She explained that three years after you’ve been tested, the student will have a three-year meeting to determine if they have continued to have the disability and if they still need services.

CONTRACT FEES

— Independent contracted evaluators: $36,236.00

— Virtual Speech Company that complete evaluations, Admission, review and dismissal meetings and therapy: $291,295.00

— Retired people who have returned to work: So far, they have spent $22,596 on people that have retired and come back to work.

— Virtual assessment staff: $17,000

— Virtual counseling: $10,685.50

— How much is staff being paid to work weekends to test kids and are they getting stipends? Staff who assess on weekends earn $65 an hour. Weekend assessments are not covered by a stipend.