Board approves special-education contracts as members warn HOPE Scholarship and funding shortfalls threaten services

The Cabell County Board of Education on July 15 approved a package of contracts to provide special-education and related services while board members and at least one public commenter warned that state policy changes and declining enrollment are eroding local funding.

The contracts approved include agreements with Mountain State Educational Services Consortium (Mountain State ESC) for academic affairs and for a nursing coordinator that supports the district's Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) program; contracts for Medicaid billing handled through Mountain State ESC; agreements for occupational therapy (OT) and physical therapy (PT); homebound speech services; applied behavior analysis and functional behavior assessments; job coaches and transition services; and the Everway LLC curriculum for students working on alternate standards.

The board received detailed descriptions of the services. Kelly Watkins, director of instruction and leadership for Cabell County Schools, summarized the Mountain State work and several contracts, saying the district uses contracted staff and consortium arrangements to run events such as regional math field day and to provide services that district staff cannot cover in-house. On the job-coach program a presenter said, “We have 9 plus our 2 career transition specialists. So there's a total of 11 adults that are going out with these students and helping with job tasks,” describing a mix of paid job coaches and district transition specialists who help students in community employment settings.

Why it matters: district officials and board members repeatedly tied the contracts to legal obligations and lost funding. Board members said services required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2004) must be provided regardless of state support, and that the federal government pays only a portion of special-education costs. A staff member told the board that many of the contracted services have been paid from the district's general current expense fund or excess levy dollars because federal allocations do not cover actual costs.

Discussion points and limits of authority - Board members and administrators emphasized that IDEA requires districts to provide identified services but that state and federal funding shortfalls shift costs to local accounts. A presenter said, in part, “it comes from general current expense fund, which is the county money that we either receive from the excess levy [or] from our allocation from the state. It's not coming from the federal government because we don't even receive enough.” - Public commenter Monte Fowler said the HOPE Scholarship and related state changes are undermining public education funding. Fowler commented: “None of this is good for public education. None of this is good for local control.” - Board members requested a workshop to review IDEA obligations and to discuss local responses to funding changes; one member said, “I can't sit silent about this,” and asked the board to be proactive.

Formal actions and next steps - The contracts described were presented on the consent agenda and approved as part of the meeting's consent items. (The transcript shows the consent agenda and personnel items were moved, seconded and approved; individual roll-call votes were not recorded in the transcript.) - Administrators said some contract amounts can fluctuate with changes in student service needs (for example, OT/PT hours that vary by student IEP), and that prospective increases were handled through supplemental agenda items when needed.

Clarifying details from the meeting - Job coaches and transition staff: 9 job coaches plus 2 career transition specialists (11 adults total) serve students in the transition-to-work program; more than 65 employer/partner contracts support student placements. - Occupational and physical therapy: frequencies on IEPs vary (examples provided included 30, 60, or 90 minutes) and contract totals are calculated from hourly rates and the district's IEP roster. - Nursing coordinator: contracted through Mountain State ESC; required by program rules for the LPN program to oversee contracts, evaluations and clinical access. - Medicaid billing: the district prepares plans/forms and Mountain State ESC performs the billing under contract.

What the board said it will do next Board members asked for a dedicated workshop to review IDEA obligations, funding sources for special-education services and local options for advocacy or coordinated action with other districts. Administrators said they would provide requested details on funding sources and program costs in follow-up materials.

Ending: The board approved the contracts to ensure services are in place for the coming school year while leaving open further discussion about funding and local strategy to respond to state-level changes.