Serious Behaviors

Some Special Education students will exhibit behaviors that result in the need for a more intensive level of interventions.

Mental Health Services 

Under Chapter 26.5 of the Government Code,  Division 7, title 1, Section 7570- 7588 and CCR Title 2, Division 9, Chapter 1, 60030- 60200 of the state of California, county departments of mental health must collaborate with local school districts to provide school - focused mental health services to assist the student in benefiting from his/her Special Education program.  This means that for some students, the mental health services provided by the county mental health program will be a part of the IEP and the services coordinated by the student’s Special Education Case Manager.

The mental health departments servicing our SELPA are:

Ventura County:  Ventura County Behavioral Health (VCBH)

Los Angeles County:  LA County Mental Health

For information for parents on the Chapter 26.5 Mental Health Program, click here for a brochure.

For information for school staff to assist the family in making a referral for mental health services to VCBH outside of the IEP process (“community referral”) click here.

For information for school staff to assist in making a referral for mental health services as part of the IEP process, click here.

State legislation (SB 1895) requires that schools provide counseling, social work services, and behavior interventions to students with disabilities prior to making a referral to county mental health for services as part of the IEP.  Click here for a copy of the IEP Prereferral Interventions for 26.5 Mental Health Services Form.  In addition, there are funds that come to each district to assist with costs of the prereferral services.  The SELPA has a contract with Jewish Family Services, which provides non-denominational counseling to many students in the SELPA.  In addition, some districts in the SELPA participate in the Mental Health Services Consortium, which provides staff to perform the prereferral services.  Click here for the SELPA Mental Health/Behavior Specialist Department.

Residential Placement

Some students with mental health needs will require placement out of the home into a residential facility in order to benefit from their Special Education program.  This is a decision that is made by the IEP team, including the mental health case manager and the parents.  Click here for the IEP Residential Placement Form. If a student is placed in a residential placement under Chapter 26.5, there will be no cost to the family.  School services will be provided by the district in which the family resides, and the residential services will be provided by the county department of mental health.

Behavior Subject to Disciplinary Action

Occasionally, Special Education students will demonstrate behaviors that make them subject to suspension or expulsion.  Click here for the acts which are considered possible for suspension and/or expulsion under CA Ed Code. 48900- 48927  Special Education students may be both suspended and expelled, but there are special “checks and balances” in the system that provide some extra considerations for students with disabilities. 

Click here for the Ventura County Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA) Guidelines for Suspension and Expulsion.

All students can be suspended, at the discretion of the school principal, up to ten (10) cumulative school days in a school year, with no individual suspension for more than five days.  Once a student is being considered for suspension beyond ten days, if there is a pattern to the behavior, a special IEP meeting is held, which is called the Manifestation Determination meeting.  The purpose of the Manifestation Determination meeting is to determine whether the behavior which is subject to discipline was caused by or had a direct and substantial relationship to the disability.   If the team determines that the behavior was a manifestation of the disability, then certain steps must be taken before disciplining the student further.  If it is determined that the behavior was not a manifestation of the disability, the student can be suspended up to twenty (20) cumulative days in the school year.  If there was no pattern, the student can also be suspended up to twenty (20) days.

If a student is being considered for recommendation to the school board for expulsion, a Manifestation Determination Review IEP meeting must also be held.  If it is determined that the behavior subject to expulsion was a manifestation of the disability, the student will not be expelled.  If it is determined that the behavior was not a manifestation of the disability, the student may be recommended to the board for expulsion as may any other student.  However, if a Special Education student is expelled, the district is still responsible for the provision of Special Education services during the period of the expulsion.

Click here for a copy of the Manifestation Determination form.

If a student with a disability commits an act which is considered to be dangerous, the principal has the option of placing the student in an Interim Alternative Educational Setting (IAES) for a limited period of time.  See the Suspension and Expulsion Guidelines for these acts and the requirements around the IAES placement.