Month: May 2013

PA Issues New Guidelines to Improve Early Education Access for Homeless Children

 

May 15, 2013  – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

New policy guidance issued last week by the Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning improves access to early learning opportunities for homeless children under the age of six.

This policy sets new standards for interagency collaboration at state and local levels to identify young children experiencing homelessness across service systems and ensure access to quality early learning programs, such as Head Start and Early Intervention.

“We are so pleased that OCDEL has stepped forward to provide important vision and leadership that will help ensure that young children experiencing homelessness get the supports and services to which they are entitled and desperately need,” said the Education Law Center’s Nancy A. Hubley, Managing Attorney for ELC’s Pittsburgh office.

Hubley works closely with the Bridges Collaborative — a network of early childhood and homeless advocates — to address the lack of education access for these young children.

According to OCDEL, more than 40 percent of Pennsylvania’s homeless children are under the age of six.

“This policy,” Hubley added, “will help ensure that staff of social service agencies, including housing programs and early childhood providers, are aware of which children are to be considered homeless and the legal rights that accompany them.”

OCDEL’s guidelines reiterate the federal requirements for supporting homeless students, as detailed across federal and state laws such as the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act.

The act, which became law in 1987, ensures that “each child of an individual who is homeless and each youth who is homeless have equal access to the same free, appropriate public education, including a public preschool education, as provided to other children and youth.”

Read the OCDEL guidelines.

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The Education Law Center is a non-profit legal advocacy organization, dedicated to ensuring that all of Pennsylvania’s children have access to a quality public education.

CONTACT:
Brett Schaefer
Education Law Center
Office: 215-238-6970 ext. 334
Mobile: 215-519-6522
[email protected]

 

ELC Report: School Nurse Shortage Jeopardizes Student Health and Safety

May 7, 2013 – The health and safety of Philadelphia’s public school students is in jeopardy following the elimination of more than 100 school nurse positions, according to a new report from the Education Law Center conducted with assistance from the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) Program at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

Currently, 195 nurses are serving approximately 200,000 public school students. That’s one nurse per 1,025 students. National research recommends one nurse per 750 healthy students, according to the ELC report.

One of the results of the nurse shortage has been an increase during the 2012-13 school year in non-medical school personnel administering medications and treatments to students on a regular basis.

A current school nurse explained the risks of continuing that approach.

“Children who have chronic health problems such as asthma, diabetes, or food allergies are not safe in schools without a full-time school nurse. Numerous medication errors have already occurred as a result. If the District continues on the current path, we will soon realize the real cost,” said one of the school nurses who participated in the research.

Beyond the immediate health risks, the lack of school nurses places the School District of Philadelphia at risk legally.

“The District is legally obligated to provide specific nursing services to children with special education needs and those with qualifying disabilities, such as asthma and diabetes,” said Education Law Center Senior Attorney Maura McInerney, who co-authored the report. “If school nursing services are not provided to ensure that children can learn and are properly accommodated in school, they may suffer discrimination in violation of federal and state law,” she said.

ELC reviewed research on public health and school nurses, conducted in-depth interviews, and surveyed more than 70 representatives of organizations serving children with disabilities, school nurses, and families of children with healthcare needs.

Based on that research and additional research on student health and safety, ELC recommends that the District take the follow steps to fix the current crisis:

  • Conduct a cost-benefit analysis to clarify the value of nurses in the School District of Philadelphia.
  • Adopt a student-to-school nurse ratio on a “per school” basis that accounts for the impact of students with acute and chronic medical needs and special education needs. This ratio will ensure compliance with all applicable federal and state laws that protect both students with disabilities under the IDEA and those with qualifying disabilities under Section 504.
  • Eliminate reliance on untrained personnel to perform duties of a school nurse.
  • Utilize nursing students from various local universities to perform discrete tasks with supervision by a registered and licensed school nurse.

“We recognize the fiscal crisis facing the District but we cannot afford to overlook the essential and cost-effective role that school nurses play in supporting learning — from ensuring consistent attendance to identifying medical needs to ensuring that children with disabilities receive needed support.”

The School Nurse Shortage in Philadelphia: Prognosis & Prescription for Change

 

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The Education Law Center is a non-profit, statewide legal advocacy organization, dedicated to ensuring that all of Pennsylvania’s children have access to a quality public education.

CONTACT:
Education Law Center
Office: 215-238-6970