In this webinar, speaker Nishanthi Kurukulasuriya, attorney with Mental Health Advocacy Services, Inc., will discuss: - What services are available in schools - Who provides the services - Accommodations and modifications - Strategies for developing an I.E.P. that meets the student’s unique needs - How to be an effective advocate

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Welcome to the U.S.C. UCEDD Webinar Series
for Individuals with Disabilities & Parents
funded by grant #90DD0695 from
the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (A.I.D.D.)
Administration on Community Living
January 26, 2017

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Your Moderator
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Susan Kanegawa
U.S.C. UCEDD Family Support Coordinator
skanegawa@chla.usc.edu
www.uscucedd.org
The U.S.C. University Center of Excellence in Developmental Disabilities at Children’s
Hospital Los Angeles (U.S.C. UCEDD) is one of 68 UCEDDs funded to promote systemic
change, advocacy, and capacity building in states on behalf of individuals with, or at risk for,
developmental, behavioral and/or special health care needs, and their families.
The U.S.C. UCEDD Webinar series is designed to educate the community about current policy
issues which impact the lives of people we serve and their families. Our primary audience is
individuals with special needs and their families. At this time, our webinars are in English only.
We are exploring methods to make this series available in other languages in the future.

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Mental Health Services in Schools
For Students with Intellectual and
Developmental Disabilities
Nishanthi Kurukulasuriya
Staff Attorney
Mental Health Advocacy Services, Inc.
January 26, 2017
The views and opinions expressed in this presentation are the speaker’s own and do not necessarily reflect
the views and opinions of the U.S.C. UCEDD or C.H.L.A.

6. About Nishanthi Kurukulasuriya
Mental Health Advocacy Services, Inc. (M.H.A.S.) is a private, non-profit
organization providing free legal services to people with mental disabilities.
M.H.A.S. assists both children and adults, with an emphasis on obtaining
government benefits and services, protecting rights, and fighting
discrimination.
M.H.A.S. also provides training and technical assistance to attorneys, mental
health professionals, consumer and family member groups, and other
advocates. In addition, M.H.A.S. participates in impact litigation to improve
the lives of people with mental disabilities.
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Nishanthi is a staff attorney with Mental Health
Advocacy Services in Los Angeles.
nkurukulasuriya@mhas-la.org
www.mhas-la.org

7. Mental Health
Services
Available in
Schools
Who Provides
These Mental
Health
Services?
Strategies for
Developing an
I.E.P.
How to Be an
Effective
Advocate
Overview of the Webinar
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Mental Health
Services
Available in
Schools
Who Provides
These Mental
Health
Services?
Strategies for
Developing an
I.E.P.
How to Be an
Effective
Advocate
What Kinds of Mental Health Services
Are Available in Schools?

9. Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (IDEA)
• Purpose:
IDEA ensures that all children with disabilities have available
to them a free appropriate public education (FAPE). Special
education and related services should be designed to meet
their unique needs and prepare them for further education,
employment, and independent living.
• Services at no cost to the parent
• Individualized Education Program (I.E.P.)
• Least Restrictive Environment (L.R.E.)
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10. Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (IDEA)
• Parents have rights to address:
• Procedural violations of IDEA (Compliance Complaint)
• Substantive violations of IDEA (Due Process Complaint)
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Photo courtesy of Sal Falco

11. I.E.P. Versus 504 Plan
• I.E.P. comes from the IDEA
– IDEA ensures students with disabilities are offered FAPE
– Focus on educating eligible students by designing
education plan that will meet their unique needs
– More procedural protections than Section 504
• 504 Plan comes from Section 504 of Rehabilitation Act of 1973
– Section 504 prohibits discrimination based on disability
– Focus is on equal opportunity for students with disabilities to
obtain the same benefit as their peers without disabilities
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12. Assessment and Eligibility
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• Request assessment in writing
– Reason(s) for assessment must be related to child’s
education (i.e., ability to learn, social skills, behavior)
• Proposed assessment plan
– 15 days after request (excludes days during school breaks
that are longer than 5 days)
– Make sure plan includes assessments to address all
concerns in request, e.g., Social-emotional, assessment for
Educationally-Related Mental Health Services, Functional
Behavioral Assessment
– Sign consent and return to school to start 60-day timeline

13. Assessment and Eligibility (cont’d)
• I.E.P. meeting within 60 days
– Discuss results of assessment, eligibility, offer of FAPE (i.e., educational
placement and services)
– Multiple eligible categories possible
• Emotional Disturbance: includes conditions in which children are
unable to build relationships with peers and teachers, have
inappropriate behaviors or feelings under normal circumstances,
or have a general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression
• Individual Educational Evaluation
– Parents have a right to this, if they disagree with assessment results
(e.g., if assessment results indicate child’s disability does not affect
their educational performance enough to qualify them for an I.E.P.)
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14. Special Education and Related Services
• Special Education:
Specially designed instruction to
meet the unique needs of a child
with a disability
– Adapts the content,
methodology, or delivery of
instruction, as appropriate, to
address the unique needs that
result from the student’s
disability
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ImagecourtesyoftiniromaatFreeDigitalPhotos.net

15. Related Services
• Related Services:
Supportive services that are required
to help a child with a disability benefit
from special education
– Includes, but is not limited to:
• psychological services
• social work services
• assistive technology
• transportation
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Note: All placements and services are available for consideration.
Schools cannot limit special education or related services to certain
educational placements.

16. Educationally-Related
Mental Health Services
• Educationally-Related Mental
Health Services (ERMHS) also
known as Educationally-Related
Intensive Counseling Services
(ERICS)
• May be appropriate for
students with behavioral,
emotional, social or mental health concerns that interfere
with educational progress
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17. Educationally-Related
Mental Health Services (cont’d)
• ERMHS, also known as ERICS, may include a wide variety of
mental health-related services:
• Individual or group counseling by a licensed clinician
• Parent or family counseling by a licensed clinician
• Training for teachers or family members
• Case management
• Wraparound services
• ERMHS assessment
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18. Behavior Support Plan or
Behavior Intervention Plan
• If a student’s behavior interferes with his/her ability to
access education, a Behavior Support Plan (B.S.P.) or
Behavior Intervention Plan (B.I.P.) may be appropriate.
• Parents or educational rights holders can request a Functional
Behavior Assessment (F.B.A.), which analyzes the A.B.C.s of
behavior (Antecedent, Behavior, Consequence) to determine
the appropriate plan to change behavior and improve learning.
Note: Assessment timelines apply (15 days to respond to request,
60 days to conduct assessment and hold I.E.P.)
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19. Behavior Support Plan or
Behavior Intervention Plan (cont’d)
• B.S.P. may include:
– skills training
– strategies for the teacher
– incentives and positive reinforcements
– teaching coping and self-monitoring skills
– More
• Make sure teachers and other staff working with child are
aware of the B.S.P. and know how to implement
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20. Procedural Safeguards
• Compliance Complaint
– Procedural violations
– California Department of Education
• Due Process Complaint
– Denial of FAPE
• Disagree with school district’s offer of services or
placement
• Denied opportunity to meaningfully participate in
development of I.E.P.
• Disability harassment may amount to denial of FAPE.
– Office of Administrative Hearings
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Mental Health
Services
Available in
Schools
Who Provides
These Mental
Health
Services?
Strategies for
Developing an
I.E.P.
How to Be an
Effective
Advocate
Who Provides
Mental Health Services in Schools?

22. Who Provides
Mental Health Services in Schools?
• Local education agencies (L.E.A.),
which are typically local school
districts, are responsible for
providing mental health services for
students who need them to access
and benefit from their education.
• Many L.E.A.s or school districts contract with local county
mental health agencies to provide ERMHS services for them
under the I.E.P.
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23. 23
Mental Health
Services
Available in
Schools
Who Provides
These Mental
Health
Services?
Strategies for
Developing an
I.E.P.
How to Be an
Effective
Advocate
Strategies for Developing an I.E.P.
That Meets the Student’s Unique Needs

24. Strategies for Developing an I.E.P.
That Meets the Student’s Unique Needs
Individualize
– Account for student’s particular strengths and needs
– Present Levels of Performance and Goals
– Behavior plans
– Complement of services and equipment needed to
ensure student progress
– Placements
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25. Strategies for Developing an I.E.P .
That Meets the Student’s Unique Needs
Coordinate services
– Regional Center, community-based or private providers
– Coordination can include parent involvement to ensure
consistent approach, particularly with behavior, both at
school and at home
– Do not overload
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26. How to Be an Effective Advocate
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Mental Health
Services
Available in
Schools
Who Provides
These Mental
Health
Services?
Strategies for
Developing an
I.E.P.
How to Be an
Effective
Advocate

27. Put Requests in Writing
• Requests for assessments, interim I.E.P. meetings, etc.
• Do not rely on email
• Handwritten or typed
• Make copies
• Take in to office to get it stamped
with date received
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28. Keep Log or Notebook
of specific incidents or violations to develop record for
potential complaints
• Be specific about who did (or failed to do) something, when it
happened, and what your efforts were to resolve the issue
• Examples: failing to provide a service agreed to in the I.E.P.,
failing to timely respond to requests, changing your child’s
educational placement without holding an I.E.P. meeting.
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29. Prepare Yourself to Be a Participant
at I.E.P. Meetings
• Discuss with your child’s other service providers
– Regional Center, family support groups (Family Resource
Centers), and advocacy organizations
– Talk through current issues and concerns and potential
changes to services and/or placement
– Write a list of the concerns and potential changes you
want to have discussed at the I.E.P. meeting
• Request and confirm interpreter, if necessary
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30. At the I.E.P. Meeting
• Bring someone
– Someone with knowledge of your child’s issues, e.g.,
Regional Center service coordinator, therapist, medical
provider
– Someone to support you in the meeting, e.g., parent peer
support, friend
• Bring copies of documents you want to share with I.E.P. team
– Reports and assessments from psychiatrists, therapists,
counselors
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31. At the I.E.P. Meeting (cont’d)
• Take notes
– Who was present at the meeting?
– The nature of meeting and what issues were discussed?
• e.g., annual I.E.P., interim I.E.P., or I.E.P. to discuss
results of an assessment?
– Where and when was the meeting?
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32. At the I.E.P. Meeting (cont’d)
• Ask questions
– To participate in a meaningful way, you need to know what
everyone is talking about.
– Seek clarification of issues, acronyms, and technical language
when you do not understand.
– If I.E.P. goals not met, ask why to understand what changes
need to be made.
• Do not be rushed into finalizing the I.E.P. if not satisfied that all
relevant issues have been discussed.
– If cannot cover everything in time allotted (typically an 1 hour),
ask to reconvene at a later date to complete I.E.P. meeting.
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33. At the I.E.P. Meeting (cont’d)
• Be specific
– Goals: Specify annual and interim goals and who is
responsible for evaluating/monitoring progress toward goals
– Services: What services to be provided, by whom, duration
and frequency (e.g., 30 minutes/2 times a week)
– Placement: Specify how much time student will spend
outside general education setting
– If child’s school, teachers, and/or service providers change,
specifics in I.E.P. will be extremely helpful to new school,
teachers, and/or service providers, and make interruption
of services during your child’s transition less likely.
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34. At the I.E.P. Meeting (cont’d)
• Review
– Goals, services, placement
– I.E.P. document should reflect, usually in the Notes section,
the team’s discussion--particularly any concerns you
raised, and the responses by other team members
– You do not need to sign the I.E.P. at the meeting -- you can
take it home to review, discuss with others, and think about
it. But keep in mind the proposed changes in the I.E.P.
cannot begin until you sign your consent to them.
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35. At the I.E.P. Meeting (cont’d)
• Right to Disagree
– If you and the district disagree on a proposed I.E.P., the
last signed I.E.P. remains in effect while your dispute is
resolved.
– If you sign the I.E.P. but change your mind, you can
withdraw your consent in writing.
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36. Resources
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Mental Health Advocacy Services, Inc. – Education Publications
http://mhas-la.org/education/
Disability Rights California – Special Education Rights and Responsibilities
http://www.disabilityrightsca.org/pubs/PublicationsSERREnglish.htm
California Office of Administrative Hearings – Due Process Complaints
https://www.documents.dgs.ca.gov/dgs/fmc/dgs/oah038.pdf
California Department of Education – Compliance Complaints
http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/se/qa/cmplntproc.asp
California Department of Education – Mental Health Services F.A.Q.
http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/se/ac/mhsfaq.asp

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mental health services for students with
intellectual and developmental disabilities?

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