Response to Intervention (RTI)

PURPOSE

It is the goal of the FCPS Student Services Department to have in effective policies and procedures designed to prevent the inappropriate over-identification representation by race or ethnicity of children with disabilities, or particular disability. School based Response To Intervention teams or school based intervention teams have been developed to ensure this does not happen.

The goal of the School Based Intervention Teams (Student Assistance Team at the high school) is to provide support to helping students overcome challenges by providing pre-intervention strategies to meet the needs of individual students within the regular education program. The team is student centered and facilitates a process that results in the implementation of strategies, accommodations, and services that will enable the student to be successful in school. When a student is referred to the school based intervention team, the team has the responsibility to review any problems interfering with the student’s performance, to brainstorm solutions, to make recommendations, and to monitor and review the recommendations. Services provided through an RTI plan are not special education services. Parent permission is not required to conduct an RTI meeting, however, they are encouraged to participate in the process.

The RTI or SAT has no time constraints limiting exploration of alternatives within the regular education programs. However, when it becomes obvious that reasonable in-house intervention strategies have not been effective, the CST should consider a referral for formal evaluation.

The problem solving process does not preclude the team from making a referral for evaluation for either Special Education or Section 504 prior to implementing strategies. This however is the exception to procedure!

COMPOSITION

RTI Team can be composed of the following:

  • Administrator
  • Teacher (s)
  • Specialist (s)
  • Referring Source, as appropriate (except when referring source would breach confidentiality of child)
  • Psychologist/Guidance CounselorWhile the parent is not a required member of this team, it is recommended that parents be invited to actively participate in these meetings.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF TEAM

The responsibilities of the Team are to:

  • Serve as an in-house resource for teachers who have students experiencing school difficulties.
  • Provide recommendations, encouragement, and support to classroom teachers thus enabling them to successfully instruct students with a wide range of abilities within the classroom setting.
  • Process referrals for students in need of assistance

Initial Referral to School-Based Intervention Team

  1. A referral to the Team may be made by classroom teachers, other school personnel, parents, or other sources using school form(s).
  2. All referrals shall be made in writing to the Team chairperson using approved forms. The forms must be completed, dated, and signed by the person making the referral. Parents may make their request in writing, orally to the principal, or electronically.

Team Action

  1. The designee/administrator must decide within three days the course of action to be taken. The Team must meet within ten (10) business days from the receipt of a referral.
  2. Actions taken by the Team shall be documented in writing, and shall include information on which any decision made was based.
  3. After a thorough discussion of the student’s strengths and weaknesses, two courses of action are possible.
  • a. The Team, which is composed of knowledgeable individuals, may decide that the student should participate in classroom based interventions through an RTI plan before considering evaluation. The Team should plan to reconvene at a later date to review the student’s progress.
  • b. If the student is suspected of being disabled under either I.D.E.A. or Section 504 of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act, an evaluation will be recommended. If a student is suspected of being disabled, the school based intervention team will ensure that the appropriate people to recommend evaluations are present at the meeting (school psychologist and special education team leader or special education administrator).

Formal Special Education Evaluation

The special education team leader is responsible for forwarding the referral information to the Director of Special Education within five (5) business days. Remember to include relevant information including the RTI plan and data, if the student had a plan. This packet needs to include a copy of all forms completed by the Team.

The Parental Permission form is to be forwarded to the Director of Special Education as soon as the parents sign it. The process for determining eligibility must be completed within sixty- five (65) business days after the meeting date. As soon as all required evaluation components have been obtained in writing, an Eligibility Committee meeting will be scheduled. The school and the child’s parents will be notified of this meeting. At least one regular education teacher of the child must attend the eligibility meeting.