AN ACT
Relating to education programs; adding new sections to chapter 28A.600 RCW; and
creating a new section.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE
OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) A
student's ability to learn can be adversely impacted by a number of factors,
including but not limited to: Lack of parent involvement and support; child
abuse and neglect; poverty, including parental unemployment or underemployment;
family transiency and homelessness; drug and alcohol abuse; poor health and
nutrition; crime; and peer influence.
(2)
The legislature finds that:
(a)
Prevention and intervention services at the elementary school level can offer
early identification, encouragement, and follow-up of each child's special
interests, creative talents, and particular abilities as well as identification
of and cooperative assistance with learning, emotional, environmental, social,
or physical obstacles to normal child growth and development; and
(b)
The provision of counseling and related prevention and intervention services at
the elementary school level can contribute to enhancement of the classroom
environment for students and teachers, and better enable students to realize
their academic and personal potential.
(c)
The legislature finds that services should be provided to the extent possible
by public or private human service agencies.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 2. Unless
the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply
throughout sections 2 through 7 of this act.
(1)
"Child intervention specialist" or "community-based public or
private human service provider" means a person who provides early
intervention and prevention services and includes but is not limited to
services provided by licensed mental health professionals, child psychiatrists,
health care providers, social service caseworkers or social workers, school
counselors, school psychologists, school nurses, and school social workers.
(2)
"Early grades," "elementary grades," and "elementary
level" mean kindergarten through grade six and may include preschool age
children served by the school district.
(3)
"Elementary grades prevention and intervention program" means a
district-wide program or plan of early detection, prevention, and intervention
of learning, emotional, environmental, social, or physical problems of
elementary students, that addresses student and family needs; the appropriate
use and roles of child intervention specialists, including training and
necessary supervision; interprofessional cooperation; and interagency, public
and private, collaboration and coordination of the planning, delivery, and
evaluation of programs and services.
(4)
"Early intervention services" means services that are provided to
address social and emotional factors that can affect student performance and
behavior and that are provided when problems just begin to emerge.
(5)
"Prevention services" means services that are provided to address
social and emotional factors that can affect student performance and behavior
and that are provided to students before problems occur.
(6)
"Superintendent" means the superintendent of public instruction.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 3. (1)
From funds appropriated by the legislature, the superintendent shall establish
the fair start program to assist school districts in providing prevention and
intervention programs for elementary grade students. The fair start program
shall not become a part of the state's basic program of education obligation as
set forth under Article IX of the state Constitution.
(2)
The superintendent shall distribute funds equitably to all school districts
based on the district's enrollment in grades kindergarten through six.
However, the allocations for school districts enrolling fewer than one thousand
full-time equivalent students shall be distributed to the educational service
district in which the district is located. The educational service district
shall use the allocation to provide early intervention and prevention services
under a cooperative agreement between the district and the educational service
district. Educational service districts shall coordinate the use of staff and
resources to serve school districts. Fair start funds shall not be used to
replace funding for existing activities. However, any district currently
providing elementary students with prevention and intervention services that
loses the source of funding for those services, for reasons beyond the control
of the district, may use fair start funds to continue or enhance the existing
level of prevention and intervention services.
(3)
Two or more school districts may cooperatively administer an elementary
prevention and intervention program. An educational service district may
administer a program on behalf of one or more school districts.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 4. (1)
School districts and educational service districts accepting fair start funds
shall submit not later than June 1, 1993, the following information to the
superintendent of public instruction:
(a)
District goals relating to prevention and early intervention services for elementary
students and the district's plan, based on the goals, for providing prevention
and early intervention services to students. To ensure delivery of appropriate
services to students through a coordinated network of service providers,
districts shall document that community-based public and/or private human
service providers, district-level and building-level staff and administrators,
and parents participated in developing the goals and plan;
(b)
Documentation of written interagency agreements or contracts between school and
educational service districts, and public and/or private community-based human
service providers to provide prevention and early intervention services to
students;
(c)
Procedures for notifying parents or guardians regarding the referral of
students for prevention and intervention services and liability issues relating
to the provision of prevention and intervention services to students outside
school buildings;
(d)
Use of grant funds for prevention and intervention-related inservice purposes,
including as necessary and appropriate, multicultural in-service training; and
(e)
Other information as requested by the superintendent.
(2) To
the greatest extent possible, the delivery of prevention and early intervention
services to students:
(a)
Shall not be duplicative of other programs;
(b)
Shall be consistent with the applicable children's mental health delivery
system developed under chapter 71.36 RCW;
(c)
Shall emphasize the most efficient and cost-effective use of fair start funds;
and
(d)
Shall be provided on a twelve-month basis.
(3)
When using school personnel to provide prevention and intervention services,
school districts are encouraged to utilize paraprofessionals.
(4)
School districts and educational service districts accepting fair start funds
shall enter into written interagency agreements with community-based public
and/or private human service providers to assure delivery of appropriate
services to students.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 5. (1)
Districts shall use fair start funds to provide prevention and intervention
services to students with priority given to students based on need. Districts
shall establish the criteria determining need.
(2)
Funds from the fair start program regarding health care shall be used only for
services and information relating to nutrition and poor health.
(3)
Nothing under sections 2 through 7 of this act precludes a district from
incorporating a primary intervention program model or a family support worker
model as part of the district's fair start program.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 6. The
superintendent of public instruction may adopt rules as necessary under chapter
34.05 RCW to implement sections 2 through 5 of this act.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 7. Upon
request, the superintendent shall provide information to districts regarding
how other districts have used fair start funds locally or how other districts
have established interagency agreements with community-based public and/or
private human service providers under section 4 of this act.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 8. Sections
2 through 7 of this act are each added to chapter 28A.600 RCW.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 9. If
any provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is
held invalid, the remainder of the act or the application of the provision to
other persons or circumstances is not affected.
