Secure the funds you need to address ERI & classroom behavior
In the current climate, it seems certain that many districts will be dealt significant state and federal education budget cuts in the coming year. But the challenges we face (such as ERI and shocking student behavior) aren’t getting smaller. So what can we do to secure the school budget we need to achieve our goals?
I want to share a strategy that may seem counterintuitive to you. But I promise this works: I did it successfully in several NJ school districts, and have counseled many more administrators through the process.
It’s about allocating public school funding wisely and securing resources to help you spend less AND get more from the funding you have.
Protect your school budget: the strategy
Here’s the strategy in a nutshell: take back a portion of your out-of-district placement budget by servicing one or more students with mental health challenges in-district.
The problem is, your teachers and child study team members are already stretched to the limit. Your staff lacks both the time and the expertise to support these students. That’s why they were placed out-of-district to begin with.
To make this strategy work, you’ll need to hire an expert resource who is trained and dedicated to supporting students with emotional and behavioral issues.
I know, this sounds impossible. Can you really save money and protect your school budget by hiring another resource? You definitely can.
Here’s how this strategy can work for your district.
Reduce out-of-district placements & take back your school budget
The fact is, there are students with serious disabilities who require out-of district programs. That’s extremely expensive: upwards of $150,000 per student for tuition and transportation. For larger districts, it adds up to millions of dollars.
However: some students, especially those with mental health and behavioral issues, can be served more effectively in-district. If you can bring back even one student, that $150,000 easily pays for the resources needed to support that student in-district… and support many more.
If you can take back a few more students, then you’ll have a surplus in your out-of-district placement budget. It’s like having money in the bank that will come in handy when the next budget cuts hit.
Learn more:
Reducing Out-of-District Placement: A Guide for Educators
To prepare to make this change, you’ll need to take these steps:
- Shift some funds from Out-of-District Placement to Professional Services in your budget.
- Bring in an expert clinician to support students with mental health and behavioral challenges.
- Identify at least one student to transition back to district next year (or avoid sending out next year).
Not only does this strategy help secure funds in your school budget, but the money you spend on mental health resources benefits your entire school population, including ALL students, families, and staff.
Get more for less with student mental health experts
Here’s what you gain by partnering with Thrive to place an expert mental health clinician in your district:
Regular counseling for students who need it to succeed. One counselor can work with approximately 20 students on an ongoing basis, plus more on an ad-hoc basis. That includes gen. ed. students as well as special education students.
Risk assessment. Clinicians know how to perform suicide screening and identify students who need immediate intervention.
Support for classroom behavior incidents. Shift the burden away from teachers with a dedicated resource with the expertise to effectively manage ERI and behavior incidents.
Support for teachers. Clinicians can consult with teachers who are struggling and share behavior management strategies.
Free up administrator time. Do you find yourself spending hours every day dealing with the same struggling students? Clinicians remove that burden so you have time to handle the other essential tasks on your plate. You may even get home in time for dinner!
Help with school refusal cases. School refusal is a growing problem that takes a great deal of time and experience to solve. Clinicians know proven intervention strategies and how to work with students, families, and community resources to get students back on track (and get your staff back to their responsibilities).
Parent engagement. Clinicians communicate directly with parents about student progress and issues, which helps improve outcomes and reduces the burden on teachers and administrators.
Help finding resources. Clinicians are experts in their field and well connected in the community. They can help students, families, teachers, and administrators find the resources they need to solve problems.
Supervision and community. Thrive’s clinicians have ongoing supervision from our Clinical Supervisors as well the support of their peer clinicians in other districts.
More Thrive services. Our partners can also take advantage of our catalog of staff PD, Parent Academy, and Student Academy presentations on a wealth of topics related to mental wellness and learning.
What about hiring a counselor directly?
You may be thinking that you can accomplish the same thing by hiring a counselor yourself. That’s going to be harder than you may expect and won’t deliver the same benefits:
A staff counselor (MA) lacks the intervention expertise of a trained clinician (LCSW). Learn more: Why You Need a Clinician Instead of a School Mental Health Counselor.
There’s a shortage of mental health service providers, so finding a suitable candidate within your budget may be impossible.
You won’t save money by hiring your own counselor, especially when you factor in the cost of benefits, non-contact time, and replacement stipends (for non-contact, sick time, vacation, etc),
A staff counselor lacks a support system. They are on their own on every decision, with no mental health supervision for advice or ideas when dealing with difficult cases.
A staff counselor’s hours are restricted by contract, limiting home visits, family counseling, and inter-agency work.
A staff counselor can’t provide the wealth of training resources that Thrive offers for administrators, teachers, paraprofessionals, parents, and students.
Prepare now for education budget cuts
Chances are you are finalizing your budget right this month. Taking the first step now (shifting funds from Out-of-district Placement to Professional Services budget lines) makes it possible for you to put mental health resources in place, reduce out-of-district placements, and gain a buffer against school budget cuts.
Here’s a funding worksheet that can help you work out the math.
If you have questions, I’m happy to walk you through the process. Let’s schedule time to talk.
