A Brief Chronology
Under Goals 2000: Educate America
Act, any child who does not come to school on the first day and every day
thereafter ready to learn is considered to be "at risk" of failure in
school. "At risk" is
defined as physically, mentally, or emotionally impaired.
In
the 1995 Washington State Legislative session, SB 5276 changed all
"handicapped" designations in the Revised Code of Washington (RCW) to read "children with disabilities."
School
districts which applied for and received funds under Readiness to Learn Grants
were developing partnerships
— a consortia of public agencies (DSHS, Health
and Human Services, Children and Family Services, Child Protective Service, Law
Enforcement, Minority Agencies . . .) to provide services to children who are
considered "at risk." The
plan is to have the consortia hold office space within the school and provide
services on school grounds. If this
is not possible, the school will then refer students to the consortia at their
respective place of operation. The
Readiness to Learn Grants were overseen by the
Washington Family Policy Council established under the web of transforming
education under Goals 2000.
An
"at risk" child is considered to be "learning disabled," placing
that child under the umbrella of "children with disabilities." According to the Zebley
court decision, "In no circumstance shall a child be found 'not disabled'
solely because he or she does not have an impairment that meets a listing, or
does not have an impairment or combination of impairments that equals a
listing." This allows for a
broad definition of what constitutes "learning disabled." It could mean a child who has "a
bad hair day," has an argument with mom or dad, . . . .
A
child who is considered "learning disabled" is put on an IEP - Individual Education Plan or Program. Under education reform, the ultimate
goal is that every child will have an IEP. For more on this please see Does Your Child Need Mental Health?
A
child who is on an IEP may be eligible for Medicaid
services. Pennsylvania has received
a federal waiver which allows them to only consider the wages of the
child in determining eligibility for Medicaid. The federal waiver,
is, as far as we know now, available to all states.
At
this time, in Washington state, a child is considered eligible for Medicaid if:
1. The parents' income falls under
200% of the federal poverty level ($32,000 approximate);
2. The child is eligible for Medical
Assistance payments;
3. The parents give their permission
for the school to apply for Medicaid reimbursement for services provided the
child.
The
framework to introduce universal health care through the schools is rapidly
being put in place, piece by piece.
Once education restructuring is completed, all components necessary to
the framework will be in place and the schools will be sued as Medicaid service
providers for children and their families.
South Kitsap – The
school of the future must be far different than that of today to meet the
changing needs of society, say researchers like Dr. Shirley McCune, who spoke
to teachers here yesterday.
The
school of the future could be something like the model she described. A handful of schools in the country are
already using it:
When you walk in the building, there's a row of offices. In one are drug counselors. One is for social security. Another, family and
child psychologists. Yet
another has a doctor and nurse who do well-child exams.
.
. . There's a child-care center, and tied into it are classes for teenagers
where they learn the importance of child nurturing skills.
. . .Schools are no longer in the
"schooling business," but rather, in "human resource
development" she said.
Blueprint given for schools of the future; Terry Minteer,
Staff Writer; Bremerton Sun; October 14, 1989
Dr
Shirley McCune is currently on the staff of Dr Terry Bergeson,
Superintendent of Public Instruction, Washington
State.
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