Interagency Communication and
Collaboration in Nebraska:
Meeting the Educational Needs of Youth
in Out-of-Home Care
Pat Frost
State Title I, Part D, Coordinator
Nebraska State Department of Education
Ad Hoc Committee on the Education of
Students in Out of Home Placement





Why the Need: Hawkins-Stafford Act & Improving
America’s Education Act – connect Title I, student
performance, accountability
1996: Multi-Agency Task Force, co-led by State
Senator
2001: Ad Hoc Committee on the Education of
Students in Out of Home Placement
2004: Legislation regarding students earning credits
Commitment/legislation completed; Need to refocus
the mission of Ad Hoc Committee – assign smaller
specific work group projects
Collaboration: Who Is Involved

Education Department Stakeholders – Special
Education, Federal Title Programs, Accreditation, School
Career Counseling

Partnering Agencies – State Foster Care Review
Board and Private Residential Facilities, etc.

Established Committees – Special Education
Advisory Committee, etc.


Advisory Committees – Transition, etc.
Practitioners – local teachers, principals
Collaboration Strategies
Established vision, mission, and goals
 Gathered data through networking and
surveys
 Enlisted other established agencies and
foundations for Ad Hoc membership:


Ad Hoc Committee: 26 designees
 Smaller workgroups focused on priority areas
(e.g., transition, state assessments, data,
school completion)
Collaborative Activities

2008: Conducted annual needs assessment for
Committee priorities – identified a need for Nebraska
“systems” toolkit, using information gained from:




Focus groups with stakeholders
Topical workgroups – adding a systems workgroup
2009: Supreme Court, HHS, ED, Juvenile Justice
representatives attend Utah Collaborative Initiative
Summit
Combining the two:


Integrate toolkit with initiative
Ad Hoc Committee on the Education of Students in Out of
Home Placements & Court Initiative Advisory
 Develop timeline for collaborative planning and completion
of initiative – partnering4students website
Barriers and Lessons Learned






Use of blended funding: foundations, “in kind,”
and ED grants
Sustainability: Retirements & MOUs
Prioritizing goals and objectives
Reaching out to practitioners (e.g., Nebraska
Educators of Students At Risk (NESTAR))
Continuous improvement: professional
development and evaluation
Dissemination of information
Works In Progress and Outcomes





Online data/information sharing project
State Transition Liaison (Pilot) – Special
Education and Vocational Rehab funds
“Training of Trainers” cadre for professional
development, including cross-agency training
modules
Partnering conference on transition
http://www.partnering4students.org
 Source
of information for primary systems dealing
with juveniles and education
For Additional Information
Templates, bylaws, mission/vision
statements, priority areas structure,
practitioners samples, etc.
 Contact:

Pat Frost
State Title I, Part D, Coordinator
pat.frost@nebraska.gov
(402) 471-2478