Head Start Disability Services

Policy Council Meeting for April
at the Hopkins-Locke Center in Lorain

My visit to a center this week came after hours. I attended Policy Council on Thursday evening at Hopkins-Locke. Policy Council is made up of parents and community members. It has specific responsibilities for program oversight and is a formal part of our governance structure. It functions by consensus. Individuals bring their perspectives and knowledge. They ask questions and discuss topics before making group decisions on how to proceed. A majority vote is needed to take action.

Thursday, we discussed how our program serves children with disabilities. Head Start’s national performance standards require programs to allocate 10 percent of their funded slots for children with disabilities. Our overall enrollment is down slightly this year and, as such, so is our number of children with disabilities. In the course of discussing how we are working to boost enrollment for all children and fulfill requirements, Policy Council reviewed disabilities services.

Head Start programs must screen all children for potential disabilities within 30 days of enrollment. As in years past, we fully met this requirement.

The first step is a three-part screening done by our teachers:  cognitive skills are assessed to detect learning disabilities, social-emotional skills are assessed to detect behavioral disabilities and each child’s speech is evaluated for appropriate development. Each student is given either a pass or fail on these assessments. (I prefer “needs further evaluation” to fail, but the official documents are more blunt.)

All results are shared with parents. For concerned parents of children with passing results, further evaluation will still be done if requested. Teachers also use the screening results as appropriate to monitor children’s development and may make later referrals to one or both of our specialists as needed.

Children receiving further evaluation are seen by one or both of our program’s two contracted specialists:  a mental health professional and speech pathologist. After our specialists complete their evaluations, we make referrals – if needed -- to the appropriate school district as required.

In Ohio, local school districts determine and detail special education services for children aged 3 and older on a child-by-child basis. This applies whether a child attends public school or not. The schools create what are called Individual Education Plans (IEPs).  An IEP is what a parent needs to secure publically-provided special education services for their children.

It is not uncommon for parents and family members to deal with feelings of denial and uncertainty. For those families, there may be a delay while more information is gathered and agreement on how to proceed is privately reached. Our program works to support families during this time recognizing that early intervention is critical to a child’s development and growth.

Head Start staff do work with the school districts and provide our assessment results upon signed release. No two school districts in Lorain County have the same application and assessment process for special education services. Paperwork and additional assessments are typical.

Recently, our Practice Based Coach Samantha Testa transitioned into a new role as our Disabilities Manager. The position was expanded from a coordinator position based on current needs and budget. Ms. Testa has some great advice for parents who have disability-related concerns:

·       Let others help. Any Head Start staff member will gladly answer questions or help get needed answers.

·       Pay close attention to paperwork and requests for information. Make sure forms are completed, signed and submitted on time to avoid delays.

·       Be positive. A large number of children overcome their developmental delays, even those that require more intensive services or services for a longer duration, and most children do begin to meet expectations for children their age with the proper help.

Head Start performance standards do require every child to have an IEP before special education and related services begin. This ensures that information acted on is comprehensive and appropriate for each child. Our program has established relationships and interagency agreements across the county and districts which bring services right into our centers. Services may also be received at a provider’s location.

Most of the information above was at least touched on at the Policy Council meeting. In talking through our systems and related requirements, it became clear that getting a better idea of what has to happen, in what order, and why makes for good, productive discussion. The pivotal role parents’ play was especially evident. What I heard was a consensus that screening every child, helping parents navigate access to services, and being part of a child’s disabilities services team is one more way that Head Start’s comprehensive services get children and families well on the way to long-term school success.