The Formal Periodic Review for AEDY Programs

Alternative education for disruptive youth programs play a crucial role in providing a supportive environment for students who meet the criteria. Let’s walk through the Formal Periodic Review and highlight why each component is critical to meet the diverse needs of individual students and maximize their chances for success.

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As you begin to plan for the initial Formal Periodic Review meeting or FPR meeting, remember the team needs to consist of a Representative from the AEDY Program, Sending LEA representative, Parent/guardian, the Student and potentially the Special Education Teacher, and/or ESL teacher.

Page 1 starts with Demographics. The information here is important for several reasons. First, it clearly defines the child's individual information. Most staff do not have access to the referrals section of the Leader Services system, but they ALL should have access or a copy of the Formal Periodic Review.

Make sure to check which type of review this is, is it the initial which has to occur within five days of the child's placement. Is it a 45 day review. Or potentially is it the exit/transition review? Noting whether the student was expelled or not will inform your goal writing later on in this document. For this section, we are looking for the criteria for why the child was placed. Make sure the box or boxes are the exact same boxes that were checked on the referral.

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Within five days of placement in the program, the AEDY program must conduct assessments of each student's academic and behavioral needs. You may use a variety of assessment information provided by both the sending LEA as well as your own program to gain understanding of the student. This may include standardized tests, interviews, and observations.

As you craft the initial FPR, you should be involving all relevant stakeholders, such as counselors, teachers, and parents. This allows for a lot of diverse perspectives relating to the child's individual needs. Including the key findings from the assessment will help all parties identify potentially the areas to focus supports.

Be sure to document the dates the assessments were provided or administered to the child as well as the name of the assessments used. Review all the data that's been provided from the assessments. That information will help you craft individualized goals for the student.

Let's walk through a student example, this student was sent to AEDY for drug possession. Only after reviewing the results of the assessments did you learn that the student was actually using to lessen their anxiety, which came from significant gaps in their academic skills. The academic needs and previous grades substantiate that the student was in fact struggling.

Now this team has the opportunity to use that critical data to craft goals that will support this student in potentially replacing the use of drugs as a coping mechanism for anxiety. Additionally, support should be considered for academic needs, as that is the root cause of the negative behavior.

The Last Review section may not seem important, however, it tracks the dates of the review and asks the team to reflect on what is working in the program and what may need to be adjusted or changed. Consider what shifts in behavior and/or additional supports or interventions have been implemented since the last review? This is also an area where you can note attendance or academic concerns.

During the initial FPR meeting, the Sending LEA should inform the AEDY program of what interventions were given to the student prior to their placement in AEDY and if they were successful at the home district. The AEDY team should use this information to evaluate what interventions may support the student in the temporary setting. 

Tier 1 supports will be included in every student's FPR. Tier 2 and Tier 3 may begin to differentiate the interventions for students who require a small group or individualized supports. Remember, when time and intensity of supports increase for a student, the results and tracking of that intervention is crucial. Some interventions can take a few weeks to see success, so awareness that a student may not show progress immediately should be considered.

As goals are drafted and reviewed, you may need to return to this section to add additional supports to the list. If you have questions regarding Tier 1, 2, or 3 supports. Feel free to reach out to PaTTAN where we can provide more customized support.

Under the Behavior of Concern, list the exact behavior that occurred to result in the referral to AEDY. It's important to remember that not all parties have access to the Leader Services system. Including this information in the FPR ensures that all parties are working with the same information. It also provides an opportunity to clear up any misunderstandings before proceeding.

Be specific in defining the behavior of concern. The more information provided in each area of this document, the more prescriptive the supports can be. Remember to remove any personally identifiable information about other students.

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Behavioral goals MUST be aligned to the behavior of concern and/or the results of the behavioral assessment. Goals must be individualized and measurable. Programs must be able to show the documentation of progress or lack of progress toward the goal when making decisions regarding the student remaining in the temporary placement.

Clearly mark which goals are required - those goals that the student MUST meet to exit the temporary setting . Many programs find it helpful for all parties to create goals related to academics and/or social emotional needs. These goals should be included in the FPR but should NOT factor in the student's remaining in placement.

Next to the goal, clear numerical data should show whether or not the student has met their goal. In the goal trainings, we discuss how critical it is to have proper progress monitoring tools which makes these data simple to share during meetings. The numbers dictate whether or not the student met the goal or did not meet the goal. Don't forget to check or highlight the box that says Met goal, Yes or No. If yes, the student met the goal, congratulations, the student should now begin the exit and transition process back to general education.

Two circumstances exist where the revised goal section should be filled out. First, if a student is expelled and they met their behavior goals. A new goal should be created to continue to improve the child's skills while in the AEDY program. Importantly, new goals should not be created to keep a student past their expulsion date. The second is when students did not meet their behavior goals and, after time, the team feels the goal is not appropriate and needs revision for student success.

The Academic Review section is required to document attendance, grades, and overall academic performance of the child. Attendance concerns require regular communication and collaboration with Sending LEAs. Intervention plans need to be developed such as a SAIP, Student Attendance Improvement Plan, or a TEP, Truancy Elimination Plan. 

Making sure students are continuing to make academic progress while in the temporary setting is crucial. Students who fall behind academically while in placement are more likely to fail classes, repeat grades, drop out, or have future interactions with the legal and justice system. Ensuring alignment with courses the student will take upon return to the LEA will reduce the learning gaps that may occur.

Reviewing the credits of students when they are first placed in AEDY allows long term planning and the potential reduction of negative academic outcomes such as class failures and dropping out. Regular reporting on academics to the Sending LEAs must occur. This document tracks the student's progress during their time in the temporary setting.

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Gathering data from the staff, parents, and the Sending LEA and documenting it during the meeting keeps a record of their experiences over the last 45 days. It allows all parties to be heard regularly as the student is out of their general education setting. Students can speak to their individual goal progress and things about the program that have made them more successful.

Sending LEAs should always be present for these meetings to make the student feel they are still a part of their school community and that, when they have met their goals, the Sending LEA will positively support their transition back.

The team determines next steps under Recommendation and Exit, make sure to accurately replicate whatever your choice in Leader Services.

Will the student remain in placement with current supports? In this scenario, it's likely the student is progressing and should be able to transition or exit in a timely manner. Remain in the program with revised supports? The student may not be making the progress the team feels they should. In this scenario, there should be revised goals and/or additional interventions put in place. Exit to regular school environment. This means the student has met their goals and/or their expulsion requirement. In this scenario, the team will begin drafting the transition/exit plan for the student.

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When you're filling out this section, it means the student has met their goal or the requirements of their expulsion timeline. The team will determine when the transition plan will begin. they will also try to project how long the transition should take for the individual student. Please remember, most transitions do not take longer than a few weeks and none should take as long as 45 days. Laying out the plan and documenting the time, location, and provision of FAPE during the process is necessary. Also be sure to review the credits the student received while in placement. This will help the LEA's guidance counselor ensure that the child receives the credits they earned.

While the Successful Supports and Strategies tool is noted as optional, we highly recommend using it. Laying out the strategies that were successful for the student while in your program will help the Sending LEA and the student plan for a supportive and successful transition process. We've added some examples to frame what this could look like. Supports should be highly individualized to the student and the opportunities for support in the general education setting.

General Outcomes helps Safe Schools track the outcomes for students who are placed  in AEDY programs. The option chosen from this list should be exactly what the sending LEA enters when they are closing the referral in the Leader Services System.

Signatures for the parties present during the Formal Periodic Review should be represented on this page. If a member participated via zoom or on the phone, document that next to their typed name. No signatures give the impression that no one was at the 45-day review meeting and/or the meeting was not held.

We hope this video provided helpful insight into looking at the Formal Periodic Review from the program perspective. We have developed trainings from a perspective of all parties involved in the Formal Periodic Review which will be housed on our website, aedy.pattan.net.

Our team continues to be available if you have further questions or specific needs related to your Alternative Education for Disruptive Youth Program.