Executive Summary/Overview

The State Education Department’s (SED) Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID) employs many strategies designed to support and compliment each other for the purpose of assuring compliance, and for identifying and correcting noncompliance in a timely manner. This monitoring remains the core function of what is referred to as "General Supervision." For the past several years, VESID’s Special Education Quality Assurance (SEQA) system has been maximizing the impact of each Quality Assurance (QA) program review by focusing on one Key Performance Indicator (KPI) area at a time (i.e., Achievement, LRE, Student Exiting/Transition). These QA reviews reflect a data driven collaborative process that focuses on specific outcomes, but also ensures timely corrective action. Focused review protocols have been developed for various programs. Such programs include public schools, State agency programs, approved private preschool and school-age programs, Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES), charter schools and the State-operated and State-supported schools.

VESID’s system of General Supervision relies heavily on the 42 Special Education Training and Resource Centers (SETRC) as the primary providers of technical assistance to the field. SETRC and SEQA staff collaborate in identifying regional training needs, developing the annual QA review schedule, conducting QA reviews and assisting in the implementation of district improvement plans. As referenced throughout this Annual Performance Report, VESID requires every Local Educational Agency (LEA) to develop and implement a local Comprehensive System of Personal Development (CSPD) plan as a school improvement strategy for special education. This CSPD, as used in New York, is broader in context than the federal usage of the term and is designed as an in-depth problem solving process to direct district and school local improvement activities. New York's CSPD process starts with a thorough analysis of district/school data (key performance indicators) to identify areas of need, followed by a root-cause analysis to determine those underlying factors that may be contributing to poor performance, disproportionality or other issues associated with the implementation of IDEA. The district then identifies specific strategies to address the causal factors, develops an implementation plan, and evaluates the effect of the plan through on-going analysis of key performance indicators. LEA's are strongly encouraged to integrate the CSPD process into other school improvement processes. The CSPD plan is linked to the LEA application for federal flow through funds and requires SED approval for certain designated districts in need of improvement. For additional information on New York State's CSPD process see the September 2003 field memorandum from Lawrence Gloeckler entitled CSPD Plan Submission Procedures and Relevant Dates.

In the larger urban areas, VESID has collaborated with the Office of Elementary, Middle, Secondary and Continuing Education’s (EMSC) Office of School Improvement to develop Partnership Agreements with the Big Five City School Districts (New York City, Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Yonkers).  SEQA and SETRC staff also collaborate with the Regional School Support Centers (RSSC), which are jointly established by VESID and EMSC, to work with Chapter 405, State Improvement Grant (SIG) and other targeted districts in order to assist in planning and coordination of local and regional services so as to address identified needs and to ensure the integration of general and special education.

In addition to working with training networks, interagency agreements have been incorporated in our General Supervision system. VESID staff meet regularly with other State agencies to work and plan collaboratively to address systemic issues. These agencies include the Department of Health (DOH), Office of Mental Health (OMH), Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (OMRDD), Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) and the Department of Correctional Services (DOCS).

Seven regionally based Transition Coordination Sites (TCS) collaborate with SEQA and Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) district staff to provide technical assistance regarding transition to schools, families, students and other agencies. Using a strategic planning model, mini-grants are provided to help schools implement improvement plans.

VESID and other Offices of SED are developing comprehensive strategies to aggressively address areas of teacher/provider shortages, particularly in New York City (NYC). The NYC Joint Action Plan also involves the Office of the Professions, the Office of Teaching and the Office of Counsel. Many of the activities and strategies will have statewide implications.

The success of the general supervision systems is dependent on the data collection and reporting done by VESID’s Strategic Evaluation Data Collection Analysis and Reporting (SEDCAR) Unit. Data related to all of VESID’s 14 KPIs, including assessment data, are reported electronically to SED annually. These data are reported not only by school districts, but also by private schools, BOCES, preschools, State agency programs and all other programs serving students with disabilities. Data collection systems and procedures are enhanced annually to improve the efficiency of transmittal, quality of findings, and timeliness of dissemination to stakeholders. SEQA and SETRC staff use KPI data to determine which districts, BOCES, State agencies and other programs will be reviewed each year, and also, to determine the type of QA review. Another factor that may impact the program review schedule is if impartial hearing data and decisions highlight a particular issue or prevalent pattern of issues. Policy staff use the data to determine the need for guidance to the field, targeted brochures and regulatory amendments. SETRC and the other networks, in consultation with regional SEQA staff, use these data to determine personnel development needs and to target individual districts and schools for assistance.

The Department is analyzing IDEA 2004 and will amend all State laws and regulations to be consistent with new federal requirements by July1, 2005. The Department will conduct statewide training during 2005 on the changes required by IDEA 2004 and develop and disseminate publications articulating the new requirements.

In summary, VESID’s system of General Supervision is data driven, comprehensive and collaborative. This system covers all students with disabilities regardless of where they are placed. In addition, all offices and networks are guided by a single strategic plan and meet regularly. This collaboration helps to ensure accurate and timely communication, consistency and necessary coordination of the many aspects of General Supervision.

VESID annually reports its progress to the field in relation to the KPIs through the Pocketbook of Goals and Results for Individuals with Disabilities, which is now in its ninth edition (See http://www.vesid.nysed.gov/pocketbook/2004/home.html). The Pocketbook is available on-line, and thousands of copies are distributed throughout the year at meeting and presentations as well as provided to stakeholder groups.

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