Benefits of a Special Education Cooperative
IASBO 60th Annual Conference
May 18, 2011
Presented by:
Dr. Jim Surber
LADSE
jimsurber@ladse.org
Contributors
• Jim Surber, LADSE Executive Director, ISAC Board Member
• Judy Hackett, NSSEO Superintendent
• Tarin Kendrick, NTDSE Executive Director
• Roxanne Kovacevich, LASEC Executive Director
• Michael McElherne, LASEC Executive Director
• Gineen O’Neil, SWCCCASE Executive Director
• Neil Sanburg, GCSEC Executive Director
• Tim Thomas, NSSED Superintendent
• Michael Volpe, SASED Executive Director
• Special Thanks to Northern Illinois Roundtable and the
LADSE Executive Council
Illinois Special Education Joint Agreements:
A Partnership
How Many Joint Agreements?
Sixty Seven Joint Agreements in Illinois
-27 Legal Entities
-40 Administrative Districts
-Centralized and Decentralized
Two Types of Joint Agreements
Legal Entity: They must designate a governing board
comprised of one member of the school board of each
cooperating district and designated by such boards to act in
accordance with the joint agreement. Functions as their own
fiscal and legal entity.
Administrative District: One of the member districts must
operate as the fiscal and legal entity. The articles of agreement
define the role and responsibilities of the advisory board. The
role can range from purely advisory to having regulatory
authority over all financial and policy actions.
Changes to Cooperative Articles of Agreement Required by
PA 96-0769 and PA 96-0783 (8-29-09)
Required Components
• Provisions for Administration (employment of a Director)
• Staff
• Programs
• Financing
• Housing
• Transportation
• An Advisory Body
• Methods for disposing of property upon withdrawal or
dissolution
• Specific procedures for the withdrawal of districts
History & Definition of Joint Agreements
What was the first Coop in Illinois?
1957 LaGrange Area Department of Special Education
(LADSE) First Joint Agreement in the
State of Illinois
Joint Agreements are established by multiple Illinois school
districts “to provide needed special education facilities and to
employ a director and other professional workers” (105 ILCS
5/10-22.31) “for the purpose of providing comprehensive and
cost efficient special education services” (Illinois School Code,
2006, p.281)
Cooperatives provide progressive and
visionary leadership through a
collaborative partnership with the member
school districts, parents, and communities
to ensure the full continuum of specialized
programs and services to meet the needs of
all learners.
A Service to
Member
Districts
Administration
& Supervision
Specialized
Training of
Personnel
Collaborative
Partnership
Special
Education
Joint
Agreement/
Specialized
Programs &
Services
Cooperative
Rules &
Regulations
Legal &
Procedural
Cost
Efficiency &
Economy of
Scale
Professional
Development
Specialized Programs and Services
1. Provide leadership and technical assistance in the development
implementation, coordination and evaluation of instructional
programs and related services
2. Maintain quality and consistency of programs and services
shift resources/staff when needs change & programs move
3. Share resources within and across multi-district programs and
other cooperatives
4. Assist with the implementation of best practices and service
delivery models for participating districts (inclusion, RtI, PBIS,
etc.)
Specialized Programs and Services cont.
5. Provide direction, training and assistance with new initiatives
(RtI, PBIS, ASPIRE, etc.)
6. Assist in providing a strong continuum of services
(resource-to-residential)
7.
Reduce the need for out-of-district placements
8.
Transition Services
Transition
Services
Transition
Intensive
Family
Support
Social
Communication
Support
Meaningful
Employment
Linkages
Post High
School
Transition
Services/
Transition
Services
Linkages
Community
Access
Programming
Data
Collection on
Effectiveness
of
Programming
Vocational
Programming
Academic
Programming
An Era of Accountability: A New Standard for
Staff and Schools
“If there is NOT a scientific basis for what you are
doing with your students, you should not be doing
it.”
“You must be able to articulate the research that
demonstrates that your methods have the greatest
likelihood of producing positive student
outcomes.”
Dr. Chris Koch, Illinois State Superintendent
12
Administration and Supervision
1. Provide parents with information regarding the range of
programs and services
2. Facilitate compliance with state and federal regulations (expertise and
Knowledge)
3. Recruit, employ, supervise and evaluate highly qualified staff
4. Provide technical support for data management and filing of student
claims and personnel reimbursement (SIS, SWIS, Harrisburg, Easy IEP)
5. Educate and inform parents and districts of local, state and federal
requirements and initiatives
Administration and Supervision cont.
6. Develop child find, screening, and referral procedures by way of a
Policies and Procedures Manual
7. Complete initial evaluations and reevaluations
8. Facilitate procedurally correct of IEP meetings
9. Develop long range plans for future needs of the cooperative
10. Secure funding by filing state reports and claims
11. Prepare and administer a comprehensive budget
12. Negotiate and manage a collective bargaining agreement
Specialized Personnel
1. Provide supervision and technical assistance for certified
and non-certified staff
2. Share expertise of staff (AT, autism, behavior specialists,
RtI)
3. Provide purchased services staff and coordinate flexible
assignments of personnel (fractions of FTE, short term
leaves, etc.)
4. Develop and staff ESY programs (shared materials,
equipment, space, staff, etc.)
Specialized Personnel cont.
5.
Provide and train specialized assessment teams (ECE, AT,
low incidence)
6.
7.
8.
Mentor, coach, and train new and existing staff to foster
retention
Actively recruit highly qualified staff
Provide university practicum's, internships and student
teaching placements for specialized personnel
Rules and Regulations/Legal Issues
1. Inform parents and districts of state and federally
mandated procedural requirements
2. Assist parents and districts with the interpretation and
application of legislation/rules and regulations
3. Assist parents and staff in conflict resolution, mediation, due
process hearings
4. Chair procedurally correct IEP meetings
5. Support Timely and Meaningful Consultation and services to
non-public parentally placed students
“The ultimate test of the value of
special education is that, once
identified, children close the gap
with their peers.”
(Presidents’ Commission, 2002)
18
Professional Development
1. Provide specialized training (AT, Infinitec, Autism, Behavior, RtI, etc.)
2. Allocate 5% of IDEA funds for Professional Development
3. Allocate 15% of IDEA funds for Early Intervening Services
4. Provide innovative, pertinent trainings for member district parents and staff
upon request
5. Partner with neighboring cooperatives and member districts to pool resources in
order to secure state and national presenters
6. Share knowledge of research-based best practices and house a Resource
Library of evidence-based interventions.
Professional Development cont.
7.
Collect, review, and distribute resources on scientificallybased interventions and materials
8.
Provide CEUs/CPDUs for certificate renewal
9.
Develop and provide parent workshops based on IDEA
Needs Assessment
10.
Provide training for data management systems (Aimsweb,
DIBELS, SIS, SWIS, etc.)
11.
Professional support networks for various disciplines
(psychologists, SLPs, OT/PTs, nurses, administrators)
Cost Efficiency/Economy of Scale
1. Provide cost effective, fiscally responsible, high quality
programs and services
2. Develop and manage the IDEA Part B Flow Through,
Discretionary, and Pre-School Grants
3. Secure additional funding through Medicaid reimbursement
4. Reduce district special education expenditures by promoting
economy of scale through sharing costs (programs,
administration, specialized staff, services, equipment,
professional development and transportation)
Cost Efficiency/Economy of Scale cont.
5. Maximize use of personnel to avoid duplication of services
6. Develop/maintain fiscally responsible cooperative programs to
respond to the changing needs of students
7. Provide fiscal safeguards to maximize district reimbursements
from federal and state sources.
Thank You