Metropolitan District of Warren Township
The Problem: Warren was cited for Disproportionality under Indicator 10 starting in SY 09/10. Significant Disproportionality is defined as having a Risk Ratio of greater than 2.5.
When Virtuoso began working with MSD Warren, the RR for African American students identified as Emotionally Disabled was 2.82 and the RR for White students identified as Emotionally was 3.01.
MSD Warren had the highest enrollment of ED students of all districts in Central Indiana. The ED category represents 17. 07% of MSD Warren’s SPED population while the state average is 1.29%.
State reviewers cited the following concerns after conducting a file review of ED students:
- Insufficient pre-referral data or interventions for students
- Lack of comprehensive, multidisciplinary evaluations of the students.
- Reports focused on areas of academic concerns with very little or no documentation of medical, social, or emotional histories/factors
Our Solutions
Our team worked with School Psychologists and Building Administrators to:
- Define and quantify eligibility criteria
- Understand cultural differences in the manifestation of behavior
- Revise the district-wide Student Code of Conduct to align with a Culturally Responsive PBIS framework
- Establish a more uniform process for intervention prior to referral for testing
As of SY 13/14, MSD Warren was no longer found to have significant disproportionality for Indicator 10 (Over-representation of ED students).
Project Details
- Client Name:
- Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation
- Category:
- District Successes
- Website:
- https://district.evscschools.com/