Walker Partnerships Introduces New Resources to Help Maintain the Needs of Troubled Students within a School District in a Less Costly and Restrictive Manner
Needham, MA (PRWEB) November 11, 2014 -- Walker Partnerships introduces new resources to struggling school districts to help build their capacity to maintain students with social/emotional/behavioral needs in a less costly and restrictive manner. It does so by providing the following services: embedded Walker Partnerships staff; case consultation; program development and program consultation; case assessment; professional development; special education program evaluations; and coaching/mentoring support for administrators.
Building these types of programs from within the school district with embedded Walker Partnerships staff working in collaboration with school and district staff helps both groups establish the Flexible Therapeutic Inclusion Model of Support. Once in place this model can reduce the exiting of students from the school district to costly out-of-district placements. Allowing troubled students to remain in their school system also gives the district the ability to control expenditures through in-district programming.
In addition to reducing and controlling costs, keeping students in their schools produces important benefits for the children and their families. This is because the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires students to be educated in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE), which very often is within their school district. By increasing program capacity with Walker Partnerships, students are able to remain in their district and have greater access to the general curriculum, as well as to their peers. Equally important, by creating a less restrictive environment through the support of Walker Partnerships services, school-based staff gain assurance that they have the skill set to educate students with social/emotional/behavioral needs.
Walker Partnerships is uniquely qualified to help guide school districts through the complexities of helping to maintain the needs of troubled students. An Executive Director of a collaborative stated, "My job has lots of moving parts, Walker Partnerships’ Coaching/Mentoring service helped me frame the issues from many different sides. They helped deconstruct situations and enabled me look at issues through various lenses."
In a recent client survey, a large percentage of school districts that contract with Walker Partnerships conveyed their satisfaction with many of the services they receive. A large majority participating in the survey also indicated that partnering with Walker Partnerships has made them better equipped to educate emotionally and behaviorally challenged youth. Those that availed themselves of the special education program evaluation offered by Walker Partnerships found it to be useful, and that it encourages many of them to implement new practices within their districts.
Please contact Walker Partnerships to learn more about how it can work with your school district to build its capacity to maintain students with social/emotional/behavioral needs in a less costly and restrictive manner.
ABOUT WALKER PARTNERSHIPS:
Since 1994 Walker Partnerships has been providing comprehensive services to school districts throughout eastern Massachusetts to help them increase their capacity to include students with serious emotional disabilities. Walker Partnerships’ model of service delivery focuses on increasing student participation in general education, reducing barriers, restructuring policies, teaching best practices, and shifting culture. Walker Partnerships is fully committed to finding better ways of including students who are at risk of marginalization or exclusion.
James Earley, Walker Partnerships, http://www.walkercares.org, +1 (781) 292-2178, [email protected]
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