A: Behavioral support service hours must be provided by a qualified provider. What exactly “qualified” means is not explicitly stated in policy, nor does OSSE stipulate which licenses are required.

From OSSE’s Related Services Policy:

“Counseling/behavior support services include supportive therapeutic services provided by qualified social workers, psychologists, guidance counselors, or other qualified personnel to improve a child’s social-emotional, interpersonal, and academic functioning.”

The Co-op also asked a special education attorney who said: “I don’t think there is anything in federal or local law that specifies who must provide behavior supports.  I think the answer might vary depending on what type of support you are talking about. I think there may be occasions where a teacher can provide behavior support in the classroom and then there may be occasions where you need a social worker or psychologist to provide behavior support in or out of the classroom.  Who needs to provide the service is dependent on a student’s individual needs. Of course, most parents attorneys will argue that it has to be a licensed social worker, counselor or psychologist. But I am not sure they would always win that argument.”

For counseling/therapy the provider must be a licensed social worker, psychologist, or counselor. However, in some cases there are qualified providers who fall outside of these categories for other types of behavior support (for example – ABA, social skills teaching, other classroom-based support). We think the bottom line is IEP teams should be thoughtful about who provides behavioral support and prepared to show evidence that backs up the team decision if necessary.

A:  The current OSSE requirements for being qualified to provide specialized instruction in a charter school are minimal for those who provide resource/consultative services (push-in/pull-out). No specific license or credential is required, providers must have a bachelor’s degree and though it’s not explicitly stated, it’s expected that these teachers have had formal coursework/training/comparable experience in the field.  A support person without a bachelor’s degree would need to be supervised by a qualified sped teacher. Again, “qualified” is pretty vague. The Co-op believes that while charter schools can and should have the flexibility to hire professionals that best fit their students’ needs, anyone providing specialized instruction should have formal experience and/or training in the field of special education, or be under the supervision of someone who does.

Ultimately if your implementation of the IEP is based on the IEP team decisions, falls within OSSE guidelines and your LEA policies, is based on good data, and is leading toward positive outcomes for the child, it’s probably ok!

A: All providers working in DC Public Charter schools must follow the guidelines for their field set by the DC Department of Health and OSSE. This means a valid license issued by the DC Department of Health and/or OSSE.