| Information Only |
September 25, 2000
TO THE ADMINISTRATOR ADDRESSED:
SUBJECT: Selection for On-Site District Effectiveness and Compliance Monitoring
The purpose of this letter is to inform school districts and charter schools of the results of the Texas Education Agency's current analysis of special education data and information obtained through the Agency's complaints management system. Based on this information, the Agency has selected certain districts and charter schools to receive a comprehensive District Effectiveness and Compliance (DEC) on-site visit in the Spring of 2001. The Agency has also identified a number of districts and charter schools which will be required to participate in a self-evaluation and review of their special education programs during the 2000-2001 school year. The process used by the Agency to make these selections is explained below.
Background
Section 29.010 of the Texas Education Code (TEC) requires the Agency to adopt and implement a comprehensive system for monitoring school district and charter school compliance with federal and state laws relating to special education. Section 29.010 specifically requires that the Agency's monitoring system provide for an ongoing analysis of:
· district and charter school special education data; and
· complaints filed with the Agency concerning special education services.
The Agency is required to use the information obtained to determine the appropriate schedule for and extent of its monitoring of school districts, either on site or by other means of monitoring and review.
The Data Analysis Process: Special Education Data and Information from the Complaints Management System
The methodologies used by the Agency in analyzing district and charter school special education data are described in a document entitled Special Education Data Analysis System School Year 2000-2001. By letter dated August 18, 2000, special education directors of districts and charter schools were informed that a preliminary version of this document had been released and was available on the Agency's web site. At that time, the Agency had not yet completed its analysis of the actual numbers (or "cut-points") associated with each risk level for each data element described in the Special Education Data Analysis System. Prior to conducting its analysis of district and charter school special education data, the Agency determined all cut-points and prepared a finalized version of the Special Education Data Analysis System. That document will be posted on the Agency's web site early this week. (A complete copy of the Special Education Data Analysis System is also enclosed with this letter if your district or charter school has been identified as having an overall risk level of 4 based on the methodologies defined in the document.)
Selection of School Districts and Charter Schools for Monitoring Activities
As described in detail in the Special Education Data Analysis System, the Agency has analyzed the special education data of each school district and charter school based on ten separate data elements. For each data element a "risk level" (ranging from 0 to 4) was determined. The risk level for each data element was then cumulated across data elements to arrive at an overall risk level (also ranging from 0 to 4) for each school district and charter school.
In selecting school districts and charter schools for a comprehensive DEC visit in the Spring of 2001, the Agency initially identified all school districts and charter schools with an overall risk level of 4. Certain of these sites had already been selected for a comprehensive DEC visit during the 2000-2001 school year based on the Agency's analysis of district or charter school programs other than special education. Those districts and charter schools will receive a comprehensive DEC visit as previously scheduled.
Of the total remaining school districts and charter schools with an overall risk level of 4, the Agency removed from the list of sites for the Spring of 2001 any district or charter school that had received a "recent comprehensive special education on-site visit." Such a visit is defined as a visit from the Agency during either the 1998-99 or the 1999-2000 school year which involved a comprehensive review of all special education program compliance indicators. Districts or charter schools with an overall risk level of 4 that received an on-site visit during either school year which did not include a comprehensive review of all special education program compliance indicators were not removed from the list for the Spring of 2001. The Agency remains committed to ensuring that any and all corrective actions resulting from "recent comprehensive special education on-site visits" are implemented successfully.
School districts and charter schools that have an overall risk level of 4 but that have fewer than twenty special education students were not selected to receive an on-site visit. However, each of these sites will be required to participate in a self-evaluation analysis and review of its special education program. This self-evaluation analysis and review will be completed in the Spring of 2001.
In addition to analyzing special education data in the selection of school districts or charter schools for a comprehensive DEC on-site visit, the Agency also reviewed and considered information obtained from the Agency's complaint management system. Certain districts and charter schools were selected for such a visit in the Spring of 2001 based on complaints filed with the Agency which met one or more of the following criteria:
1. Significant difficulty in obtaining district or charter school compliance with corrective actions resulting from one or more complaint investigations;
2. Substantiated allegations of serious procedural and other violations impacting the quality of decision-making for individual students over a significant period of time;
3. Substantiated allegations that impact a "class" of students (such as students placed at a separate campus); or
4. Substantiated allegations from multiple complainants involving a single district or charter school.
Description of Enclosed Documents
Enclosed with this letter are a number of documents which provide you with additional information regarding the Agency's special education monitoring system and the Agency's analysis of your district's or charter school's special education data. The specific documents enclosed reflect the following:
If your district or charter school has been selected to receive a comprehensive DEC on-site visit in the Spring of 2001, or if your district or charter school would have been selected but had already been scheduled for a comprehensive DEC visit during the 2000-2001 school year (based on the Agency's analysis of your programs other than special education), or if your district or charter school has an overall risk level of 4 based on the data elements described in the Special Education Data Analysis System but you have fewer than 20 special education students, then the following documents are enclosed:
1. A two-page document which summarizes your district's or charter school's special education data and the risk levels assigned to each of the 10 data elements;
2. A two-page document entitled How To Interpret the Findings for each Data Element, which contains a brief explanation of each of the 10 data elements;
3. An eight-page document entitled Cut-points for Risk Levels, which summarizes the risk levels and "cut points" for each of the 10 data elements; and
4. A complete copy of the finalized version of the Special Education Data Analysis System.If your district or charter school has not been selected to receive a comprehensive DEC on-site visit in the Spring of 2001 based on the Agency's analysis of special education data and information obtained through the complaints management system, then the following documents are enclosed:
1. A two-page document which summarizes your district's or charter school's special education data and the risk levels assigned to each of the 10 data elements;
2. A two-page document which contains a brief description of each of the 10 data elements; and
3. An eight-page document entitled Cut-points for Risk Levels, which summarizes the risk levels and "cut points" for each of the 10 data elements.You may obtain a copy of the finalized version of the Special Education Data Analysis System by accessing the Agency's web site.
A copy of this letter, together with copies of the enclosed documents, is being sent to your regional education service center.
Please be aware that the Agency will be conducting another analysis of special education data and information obtained through the complaints management system in January 2001 as part of its Program Analysis System for all special programs. At that time, additional districts will be selected for comprehensive DEC on-site visits to be conducted in the 2001-2002 school year. It is also possible that certain districts and charter schools may be selected to engage in a self-evaluation and review of their special education program during the Spring of 2001 or during the 2001-2002 school year.
We understand that the special education data analysis system is a complex and still fairly new process. If you should have any questions about the process or your district's or charter school's risk levels for one or more data elements, please contact your education service center for assistance.
Sincerely,
Karen Case, Associate Commissioner
Accountability and School Accreditation
For further information on this topic, please contact your education service center for assistance.