Memorandum
To: Private School Representatives
From: Gina Murray, Director of Special Education
Date: August 5, 2008
Re: Special Education
A meeting was held on February 27, 2008 to discuss the provision of equitable special education services to parentally placed private school students with disabilities. Because you were unable to attend, we would like to notify you of the decision that was made.
For the 2008-2009 school year, Coweta County will provide speech-language services to eligible private school students. These services will be provided based on the following guidelines:
A) If you suspect a student of having a disability, you can contact Maria Carroll in the Coweta County School System (CCSS) Department of Psychological Services at 770-254-2800.
B) A description of the Child Find process is included in this letter. This information can also be accessed via the CCSS Special Education website. In addition, a meeting is held annually to explain the procedure involved in Child Find. This process can also be explained to you through an individual meeting, phone call and/or written correspondence.
C) The determination of the proportionate share of federal funds was calculated, according to federal guidelines, using the following method:
Proportionate Share
• For children 3-21, the proportionate share of Part B IDEA flow through funding, calculations are based on:
– the number of private school students with disabilities ages 3-21
– divided by the total number of private and public school students with disabilities ages 3-21
– multiplied by the allocated federal funds
Example:
5 identified eligible private school students divided by the sum of:
1500 public school students
+ 5 private school students
1505
5 divided by 1505 x 2,000,000 = $6645.52 to be spent on services for private/home school students
• For children 3-5, the proportionate share of IDEA preschool funding is computed in the same manner.
D) You may contact the CCSS Department of Psychological Services if you suspect a student of having a disability. In Georgia, student referrals for evaluation to determine eligibility for special education must be preceded by interventions from a Student Support Team or have sufficient justification for bypassing these interventions. If the student is evaluated and deemed eligible for special education, a meeting will be held. A services plan will be developed for the student. The decision made at the February 27 meeting was that, for the 2008-09 school year, the proportionate share of funds will be spent for speech therapy services.
E) These speech services will be provided by a speech pathologist employed by the CCSS at the student’s home school, the private school, or at a mutually agreed upon location.
F) If funds are insufficient, the Special Education consultant for speech services and the Special Education Director may decide at that time to provide consultative services for the remainder of the year.
G) CCSS will provide to the private school a written explanation of why a decision was made to not provide services.
Please review these procedures, sign and return this form in the enclosed self-addressed, stamped envelope. We encourage you to please contact our office if you have questions. I have included several other documents that may help you better understand this process.
Thank you so much for your assistance.
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