[The following memo was submitted by NASP in support of school psychologists in Miami-Dade
County Schools who are fighting severe proposed cuts in school psychology positions. Local and state
school psychology organizations in similar situations may adapt this memo to meet their specific
situation and SUBMIT TO NASP FOR US TO SEND TO DESIGNATED POLICYMAKERS AND
ADMINISTRATORS. You may NOT adapt and submit without our approval if you want the memo to
come from NASP.]
SAMPLE Memorandum
To:
From:
Date:
Subject:
Gene Cash, Ph.D., NCSP
President, National Association of School Psychologists
School Psychological Services in XXXXX
It has come to our attention that the Miami-Dade County Public School system (M-DCPS) is considering an immediate
and marked reduction in school psychological services. As President of the National Association of School Psychologists
(NASP), I urge you to reconsider this decision.
NASP fully appreciates the difficult financial circumstances confronting public school districts in Florida and across the
country as a result of our nation’s current economic crisis. School leaders face daunting choices in trying to maintain
educational services for students, while also being fiscally responsible. However, cutting 17% of your school psychologists,
and nearly 20% of the work capacity for remaining school psychologists in terms of their contracted hours, will pose
potentially disastrous and long-term consequences for students, families, and staff in Miami-Dade County.
School Psychologists Are Essential to Positive School Outcomes
School psychologists are critical to the ability of schools to meet the educational and developmental needs of students,
particularly given mandates established by No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and the Individuals With Disabilities Education
Improvement Act (IDEA 2004). We are uniquely qualified to perform federally mandated, comprehensive evaluations to
determine special education needs and eligibility, the absence or delay of which would deny children suspected of having a
disability their right to a free, appropriate public education under federal law. The reduction in the number of school
psychologists within the Miami-Dade County Public School system will significantly reduce the implementation of these
services, resulting in a devastating number of children unable to be adequately served.
School psychologists are trained to address barriers to learning across the spectrum of educational issues at the individual,
classroom, and building-wide levels. We provide psycho-educational assessments for learning, behavior and mental health
problems; support for English Language Learners; group and individual counseling; drop-out prevention; positive
behavioral supports; consultation with school staff, parents, and community agencies; risk assessments (suicide/homicide);
and crisis intervention and postvention services. Additionally, we have extensive knowledge of school law, and we work to
ensure that school IEP teams are compliant with federal and state statutes.
Meeting the accountability requirements for individual student achievement requires understanding the obstacles each
student faces, how they learn, and what strategies will help them succeed. We know that teachers alone cannot meet all of
these challenges for every student. This is particularly true given the growing focus on general education teachers assuming
a greater role in use of evidence-based interventions to improve literacy, to monitor the progress of those students, and to
use those data to make decisions regarding the effectiveness of instruction. Classroom teachers need the support and
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expertise of school psychologists who are equipped with research-based strategies and who have the ability to link
interventions to improved outcomes. Depleting access to such expertise and support can undermine teachers’ ability to
maintain focused classroom learning environments and to meet the learning needs of individual students.
Research Supports Increasing School Psychological Services
There is ample evidence at the national level for increasing, rather than decreasing, the school-based services provided by
school psychologists. For example, research shows that whole-school interventions, like positive behavior supports,
decrease behavior problems while improving academic performance, as measured by standardized tests in reading and
mathematics. Programs that foster students’ engagement in school reduce high school dropout. Furthermore, supporting
students’ mental health directly improves learning as well as social-emotional and behavioral functioning. The President’s
New Freedom Commission on Mental Health reported that “mental health is essential to learning as well as to social and emotional
development” and that ”growing evidence shows that school mental health programs improve educational outcomes by decreasing absences,
decreasing discipline referrals, and improving test scores …”. These findings are echoed in recommendations from the Substance
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), groups like The Center for Mental Health Services in the
Schools at UCLA, and in current legislation in Congress. School psychologists working in school settings with adequate
student to practitioner ratios regularly provide promotion, prevention, and intervention services that reduce barriers to
learning and directly improve student achievement. These services are critical to schools seeking to meet AYP guidelines
that require that ALL students be proficient by 2014.
Reducing School Psychological Staff Risks Financial and Legal Consequences
Beyond the direct negative effects on students and staff, the financial costs of such decisions can be greater than the
investment in maintaining trained, essential school personnel. IDEA mandates that “every school district provide the necessary
professional services for the diagnosis and evaluation of exceptional students” and that “students suspected of having a disability be evaluated
within a period of time not to exceed 60 school days.” This includes necessary psychological services for students. Failure to meet
these requirements could put M-DCPS at risk of federal penalties for noncompliance and increased lawsuits and due
process proceedings brought by parents dissatisfied with school decisions. Saturday assessment days are necessary to
adequately respond to referrals. Furthermore, school psychologists generate federal funds which flow directly to the district
and save the district a great deal of money. Since school psychologists are eligible providers under Florida’s Medicaid
Certified School Match Program, evaluation and treatment services which they provide to Medicaid-eligible students draw
down federal Medicaid funds which go directly to the district. School psychological evaluations demonstrably reduce
disproportionality in federally mandated programs, making it less likely that the district will be party to and vulnerable to
liability in lawsuits claiming discrimination
Inadequate School Psychological Services Will Harm Students
The maximum national recommended ratio of school psychologists to students is 1:1000. With the current staffing of 240
school psychologists (prior to the proposed cuts), the M-DCPS ratio is roughly 1:1500. Widening this ratio by cutting
school psychological staff likely means that thousands of M-DCPS students will go without necessary services or receive
inappropriate services from staff who lack the requisite combination of psychological, educational, and assessment training
and skills. With insufficient staffing, too many children are identified as having learning problems when none
exist, while many others with need are denied access to essential support services.
Sadly, it will be the most vulnerable students who are most significantly impacted—the children who most need our
safeguarding. The proposed cuts in psychological services will particularly affect those children with special needs, such as
those who have recently immigrated to the U.S., the disabled, the emotionally and behaviorally handicapped, those who
live in poverty, and those who are maltreated and/or abused. The barriers ignored or even raised as a result of reduced
student support services can potentially ripple throughout their school career.
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Districts across the country face tight budgets for the coming year. However, many of these districts continue to recognize
the value of maintaining school psychologists and other related student services personnel because they understand that we
are essential to improved academic outcomes for children and schools.
We share your goal to ensure the success of every student. NASP understands the challenges involved as we all look to
identify ways to maintain essential services that support improved academic outcomes and healthy student development.
We would be happy to provide you with additional information on this critical issue.
Thank you.
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