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Special Education Finance. MAASE December 3, 2012 Michele A. Harmala, Ph.D. Farmington Public Schools Associate Superintendent, Instructional Services and Organizational Leadership. State Aid Foundation Allowance Categorical (Section 51a) SE Transportation. State Aid
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Special Education Finance MAASE December 3, 2012 Michele A. Harmala, Ph.D. Farmington Public Schools Associate Superintendent, Instructional Services and Organizational Leadership
State Aid • Foundation Allowance • Categorical (Section 51a) • SE Transportation • State Aid • Foundation Allowance • Categorical (Section 51a) • SE Transportation • IDEA and Preschool Incentive • Federal Revenue • Medicaid • Federal • Medicaid • Federal • PA 18 • OISD • PA 18 • ISD
Special Education State Obligation 1 2 State Aid Section 51a Foundation Allowance $160,000 28.6138% Obligation for S.E Cost $286,138 and 70.4165% for S.E. Transportation Cost Section 53 funds for eligible students (100% reimbursement) $126,138
Division of Special Education Revenues for OISD LEAs FY 07/08
Public Act - 18 Public Act 18 (PA-18) funds are the 2.5456 mils raised by the Oakland ISD taxpayers for the operation of Special Education Programs within Oakland ISD. It is clearly affected by the SEV of the community.
Funding Priorities of PA 18 in OISD • ISD Operations • Common ISD programs such as: • Start-Up and Extraordinary • Section 24 and Group Homes • Capital Needs • Distributions to the LEA (PA-18 Distribution)
Special Education Funding • Public Act 18: County SE millage • How funds are used is determined by County • EXAMPLE: • OS costs • Center costs covered • Remainder allocated • Weighted per pupil formula • Greater time in GE = more dollars per formula • Increase of 1 FTE yields 1 foundation allowance (may be spread across multiple students) • Percent of students with IEPs in GE 80% or more in the last 5 years: 64%, 63%, 62%, 46%, 43%
MDE assures approx. 28% of total allowable costs If foundation is greater than 28%, the 28% is considered part of foundation allowance—no additional funds Example: $50,000 para 10,000 SE Tchr 4,000 GE Tchr $64,000 Total $60,000 allowable X .28% reimb. $16,800 - $6,800 foundation $10,000 reimbursed Special Education Funding
Special Education Funding Example: $4000 GE Tchr $6700 SE Tchr + $2300 Speech $13,000 Total (9,000 allowable cost) X .28 % reimb. $2520 (less than foundation, therefore no reimbursement)
Cost of Basic Classroom Programs 3 times cost of GE elementary 2.45 times cost of GE middle school 2.3 times cost of GE high school Cost of Resource Room Programs 1.8 times cost of GE elementary 1.3 times cost of GE middle school 1.2 times cost of GE high school Special Education Cost Approximations Center for Special Education Finance: National Statistics
Considerations • High expectations for all students • All students are general education students • Disability is a natural part of the human experience • IDEA focuses on outcomes & results • Special Education is a service, NOT a place.
MEGS to manage Flowthrough and Preschool Funds & the SE-4096 • MEGS is the online system used by the MDE • 3 grants are visible (coded by color: Red, Blue, Green) • Past • 2 Current • Yr 1 of 2012-13 • Yr 2 of 2011-12 • SE – 4096 is the SE Cost Report used by the MDE • Documents SE expenditures • Learn about Maintenance of Effort (MOE)
How to address the unique needs of special education staff? Train the trainers model Use of contractual district PD days Release time during the school year Use of technology, WIKIs, Moodles for large group or independent learning Folders on shared hard drive After school or summer PD
Shared Ownership/Leadership All staff need to understand financial implications of decisions District-wide awareness of SPPIs, CIMS, public reporting, etc. Responsibility for monitoring achievement and discipline data (suspension/expulsion) Principals share ownership of the staff evaluation process AYP implications for achievement of students with disabilities Focus on curriculum, instruction, assessment of and for learning, and professional growth
Culture Need to explicitly teach staff how to be part of the bigger system Engage in open sharing of information and trust that it will be used for good Remember that special ed has no magic wands; just fewer kids Separate funding streams may separate us at times, but don’t use it as an excuse
Strategic Cost Containment Focuses on: Leveraging existing district initiatives/process Eliminating redundancy Coordinating resources Shared responsibility/accountability Preservation of special ed funds for unique needs
Local District Changes to Control Costs: • Increasing time for all students in GE, with support • Providing a continuum of services, and service in the ‘home’ school • Serving center eligible students in FPS (Autism) • Dispersing ancillary staff across multiple buildings increases cost (mileage) and reduces efficacy (knowledge of students/staff/school) • Increasing early intervening services (ICT) and implementing Positive Behavior Support • Using professional vs. paraprofessional staff