Kindergarten Age Children Participating in the School Based Access Program Pursuing Access Changing MA Attribution

MA and EI Access is a required component of EI budgets. OCDEL identifies a funding rate and projected aggregate count for the IU. A total budget allocation composed of federal and state funds is issued. The IU is required to generate Access income as a major component of the budget (up to 10% of the state allocation). Current target: 1.4 million dollars

Changes in Attribution of Federal Funds Federal IDEA funds are channeled to serve five year olds through two sources: Component One of IDEA (611) IDEA 619 Following federal review, Pennsylvania was required to change attribution of funds for five-year-olds who were school age. The reallocation of federal funds led the IU to evaluate its SBAP program regarding school age five year olds.

Attribution of School Age Five Year Olds Children who remain in EI during kindergarten year will be identified as school age students in Leader’s System. Funds generated by SBAP billing will be attributed to the child’s home school district. The district will be able to deploy the funds according to current MA requirements.

Improvements to Preschool MA Process Dedicated staff support for families effective September 2008 Family friendly MA application packet and resource materials BCIU is a Power User for COMPASS Evaluation team referral for MA backed by EC Specialist follow up Development of resources to support families accessing behavioral health Professional development for staff around talking with families about MA and Permission to Bill SBP Sophisticated and flexible billing mechanisms including online billing

Improvements, con’t. Relationships built with County Assistance Office Understanding of how related systems work (child care subsidy, MA transfers in/out of county, Infant/Toddler waiver expiration, behavioral health system interface) Increased communication between professional staff and ACCESS office Staff training in compliant SBAP system Increased billings and income!

Ideas for Positive Change Discuss MA at transition meetings; provide MA application (being piloted) Extend family friendly packet and application support to all 13 districts Monitor annual expiration dates and send parents a reminder 30 days prior Continue staff development so parents receive accurate, helpful information Develop and update MA provider resources by area of the county to be used 3-21 yrs.

Transition to School Age Public Education from Early Childhood Special Education Where we are Changes Future Improvements

Where We Are o Half way through the transition meetings with all 13 districts o Districts ready to start evaluation processes o Many families already registered, or intending to register Procedural change: For children being identified for the first time, parents are being provided transition information at IEP meetings, with Permission to Share sought early. Where We Are

Changes Increased reliance on ed records 80-90% increase in Permission to Share prior to the transition meeting More consistent IU representation at each district’s meetings Parents coming to meetings with a clearer understanding of the purpose District scheduling of meetings if desired

Improvements Revising transition planning report form Expanding use of electronic record sharing and scanning of file documents Pursuit of Permission to Share to enable sharing records earlier Planning discussion regarding children with complex needs and highly concerned families with the district and IU staff

Things I wonder… Would it make sense to have the meetings at an IU location? What are the professional development needs for our sending and receiving teams? Where are most of our students going? How is our MA participation rate for children in transition? What do districts need from us to make the transition process better?

Your Advice Go to the IDEA Page and provide us with any feedback you have about the transition process. Or to share concerns or plan an in-depth discussion of transition in your