Ann Brennan
OSPA Executive Director
annmo929@gmail.com

The Department of Education with the help of the Ohio School Psychologists Association and other groups has released resources to address shortages among related service providers.
OSPA spent the first quarter of the year collaborating with stakeholders on the Related Service Shortage Workgroup.

OSPA was represented on the panel by Executive Director Ann Brennan, OSPA Early Career Co-Chair John Biltz, and University of Dayton School Psychology Professor Susan Davies.
As part of ODE’s efforts, videos for each profession were developed to educate the public about the services and to recruit future professionals. Then-OSPA President Bradley Paramore represented school psychologists and spoke about why he chose the profession, what he finds rewarding about it and how his job positively impacts students.

“As a school psychologist I’m able to apply my understanding of behavioral principles, problem-solving skills and a passion for helping others to find solutions for students struggling in a school environment,” Mr. Paramore says in the video.

See the video here: http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Special-Education/Related-Services

Among the short-term accomplishments of the work group are one-page resource sheets for each related service provider, highlighting training, roles and responsibilities.

“They were developed to be resources for administrators to fully understand the services these professionals are prepared to provide,” Ms. Brennan said.

The resource sheets can be found at: http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Special-Education/Related-Services

A subcommittee of the work group developed a survey of related service providers that focused on recruitment and retention and was sent to a random sample of such providers. Results were compiled by Mike Fuller, school psychologist and director of the Center for Innovation and Data Services, Muskingum Valley ESC, and by Marsha Lewis, of Ohio University.

“The goal related to this survey was to find out from practitioners the most compelling factors impacting on recruitment and retention to inform the workgroup’s final recommendations,” Ms. Brennan said.
Survey results are available online: http://education.ohio.gov/getattachment/Topics/Special-Education/Related-Services/Related-Services-Workgroup-Report-and-Recommendations-1.pdf.aspx?lang=en-US

Ms. Brennan also successfully advocated for revisions to an ODE memo on the use of “An Educator on Special Assignment to Assist with Delegated School Psychologist Related Duties.”

Coronavirus-Related Advocacy

In other activity, Ms. Brennan attended weekly coronavirus-related virtual meetings with ODE and governor’s office staff through their termination July 7. The meetings have recently resumed to discuss issues impacting on the start of the new school year. Ms. Brennan continues to engage with ODE on concerns among members and has shared OSPA and NASP resources with the department. OSPA members with questions or concerns related to ODE Guidance may email them to annmo929@gmail.com.

ODE COVID-19 information website and RESET and RESTART school reopening guidance is available at http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Student-Supports/Coronavirus

The meetings have engaged on topics such as equity for the most vulnerable students, such as those with disabilities, homeless students, children from low income families, and ELL students. Access to and adequacy of online learning is a continuing issue for some of these students.

OSPA Representation at the Capital

OSPA represents school psychologists on several ODE task forces.

OSPA Executive Board members Keith Mesmer and Emma Sacha, along with member Julie Morrison, are on the Workgroup on Improving Educational Experiences and Outcomes for Students with Disabilities. The group’s goal is to develop a special education long-range improvement plan.

OSPA member Mark Gallagher has a place on the department’s Whole Child Advisory Committee. Mr. Gallagher served as an OSPA representative on the SEL Standards writing team and also coordinates PBIS implementation in his school district. The charge of the group is to guide ODE on the “essential activities needed to meet Each Child, Our Future Strategy 7 to support the whole child. The advisory group will help establish best practices and develop and identify resources to support meeting the mental, behavioral, physical health, wellness, nutrition and safety needs of Ohio students,” according to ODE.

The group is in the final stages of the framework development.

Several OSPA Executive Board members joined Ms. Brennan in February at stakeholder meetings on draft Operating Standards for the Education of Children with Disabilities.

Ohio Legislative Activity

Ms. Brennan was among a small group of stakeholders who met in February with Sen. Peggy Lehner, chair of the Senate Education Committee, and Sen. Andrew Brenner, vice chair of the committee, to discuss their two bills on dyslexia. The Buckeye Association of School Administrators, Ohio School Boards Association, and Ohio Association of Elementary School Administrators were also at the meeting. BASA also invited a national consultant who has worked on bills related to dyslexia screening, professional development and mandated interventions.

“Both senators sincerely listened to our identified issues and were amenable to our suggested revisions,” Ms. Brennan said of SB 102 and SB 200.

The stakeholders requested the language in the Sub. SB 102 be changed to allow for dyslexia screening to take place by midway through first grade. The current version requires a district or school to screen children who are six years old or younger.

"The legislators agreed with this concept after we explained our rationale," Ms. Brennan said. "We also emphasized the need for the screening instruments to be developmentally appropriate to match the learning needs of a wide variety of students in terms of their kindergarten - first grade early literacy readiness skills."

The Senate Education Committee approved an amendment to require districts to screen students at least one time prior to first grade. It give more flexibility to districts, although it still requires the screening be done in kindergarten, by the beginning of first grade.

Both bills originally called for ODE to form a Dyslexia Advisory Committee to assist with the development of guidance and procedures related to implementing the bills. The committee amended the bill to permit, rather than require, the state superintendent to establish an advisory committee of stakeholders and experts to assist with the development of guidelines and procedures.

SB 200 would require all new public school teachers complete a dyslexia screening and interventions professional development course, and districts to require all teachers or specialists providing instruction in special education, English language arts or literacy to complete additional approved courses on a regular basis, as determined by the district’s board of education. ODE would be tasked with approving the coursework, through adopted guidelines.

The legislation also aims to have districts establish a structured literacy certification process for teachers providing instruction for students in grades K-5. The process must align with ODE guidelines and include a practicum.

SB 200 also requires that districts have at least one teacher certified under the structured literacy process per every 200 students in grades K-5, reducing the ratio to 150 in the 2023-2024 school year; reducing to 100 in the 2024-2025 year.

"The stakeholders shared our serious concerns regarding districts' capacity to meet these requirements in terms of costs and deadlines," Ms. Brennan said. "We requested that amendments be considered to replace the word certificated with training, and suggested the correct term to use would be multi-sensory instruction process, rather than structured literacy process. We also recommended that ODE provide the required PD coursework through the ESCs or SSTs and first establish a framework for doing so and providing it free or at a minimal cost to districts, through a train the trainer model.

"The senators agreed with this approach and seemed to understand that the PD training requirements and ratio deadlines may need a longer phase-in period. They also talked about seeking state funds to implement both bills."

Ms. Brennan said the stakeholders' rational for changing the language from certificated to training, (teachers would be trained not certificated) removes the concern about the costs associated with dyslexia related specific certification programs that cost about $5,000 per teacher and take more than a year of training, plus an intensive 700-hour practicum. It also allows for a train the trainer model, as non-copyrighted training materials could be used.

July amendments to SB 200 included clarifying that only teachers who have not received instruction in dyslexia reading interventions would be required to complete an approved professional development course. Another change would ensure special education and elementary literacy teachers be required to complete professional development courses “on a regular basis”. New language mandates educator preparation programs require candidates for K-5 education or special education licenses to complete two semesters of instruction in reading literacy, phonetics or related topics.