Rule 160-4-7-.14. Personnel, Facilities and Caseloads

1. (1) Unless otherwise specified under program areas, the following shall apply:

   1. (a) Maintenance of current credentials shall be the ongoing responsibility of any professional employed by or under contract with an LEA. Maintenance of records of current credentials shall be the ongoing responsibility of the LEA.
   2. (b) The LEA shall recruit, hire, train and retain an adequate supply of highly qualified (certified or licensed) personnel, including special education, related services and leadership personnel, to meet the needs of children with disabilities. [ 34 C.F.R. § 300.156(d)]

   3. (c) Related service personnel who deliver services in their discipline or profession must maintain current, State approved or recognized certification, licensing, registration or other comparable requirements that apply to the professional discipline in which those personnel are providing special education or related services and these related service personnel must have not had certification or licensure requirements waived on an emergency, temporary or provisional basis. [ 34 C.F.R. § 300.156(b)(2)]

      1. 1. The required standard credential for all personnel providing educational interpreting for children who are deaf or hard of hearing in LEAs, regardless of job title, shall hold a current Georgia Quality Assurance Screening (G-QAS) rating of Level III or higher in both interpreting and transliterating, as approved and maintained by the Georgia Department of Labor/Vocational Rehabilitation Program (DOL/VR), and/or documentation of advanced interpreting skills and qualifications through current national certification from the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID), and/or documentation of advanced interpreting skills and qualifications through current national certification from the National Association of the Deaf (NAD) Levels III, IV or V, and/or documentation of advance interpreting skills and qualifications through a current Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment® (EIPA) rating of Level 3.5 or higher. The EIPA rating cannot be more than five years old.
      2. 2. Maintenance of current credentials shall be the ongoing responsibility of any educational interpreter employed by an LEA for purposes of educational interpreting for children who are deaf or hard of hearing. Maintenance of records of current credentials shall be the ongoing responsibility of the LEA, and current credentials of educational interpreters must be filed with other personnel records (e.g., teacher certification credentials).
   4. (d) The LEA shall provide a classroom of suitable size in a distraction-free area, as required by the type of program or services to be established, with appropriate furniture, materials, supplies and equipment to meet the needs of the class or individual children to be served. GaDOE has established this policy as a safeguard to prevent placing children with disabilities in classrooms that are too small, have visual or auditory distractions or do not have items necessary to provide appropriate instruction.
   5. (e) Thirty-eight square feet shall be provided for each child in the class with a variance of 10 percent depending upon the total number of personnel in the class at any time, the type of children and class, the kind and amount of furniture and equipment required and the necessity for storage capabilities. Special circumstances shall be reviewed by the Facilities Department of the GaDOE and shall be addressed in the approved local facility plan.

2. (2) Information about caseloads for children with disabilities is contained in Appendix A below.

   1. (a) The following are maximum class sizes and caseloads for personnel providing services for children, ages 3 through 5, in Community (C), Full Day, and Part Day classes. All numbers shown for Maximum Class Size are with a Paraprofessional.

      Maximum Class Size Caseload full day 8 16 part day 12 32 C - 32

      This rule shall become effective July 1, 2007.

      APPENDIX A - CLASS SIZES AND CASELOADS

      DELIVERY

      Self-contained (SC) MAXIMUM CLASS SIZE CASE-

      PROGRAM AREA Resource (R) W/O Para With Para* LOAD

      INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES             Mild SC 10 13 14    R 10 13 26 Moderate SC NA 11 11 Severe SC NA 7 7 Profound SC NA 6 6 EMOTIONAL AND BEHAVIORAL SC 8 11 12 DISORDERS R 10 13 26 SPECIFIC LEARNING SC 12 16 16 DISABILITIES R 8 10 26 VISUAL IMPAIRMENTS SC NA 6 7    R 8 10 26 DEAF/HARD OF HEARING SC 6 8 8    R 3 4 11 DEAF-BLIND SC NA 6 7 SPEECH-LANGUAGE SC 11 15 15 IMPAIRMENTS R 7 NA 55 ORTHOPEDIC IMPAIRMENTS SC NA 11 11    R 4 5 15

      See Rule 160-5-1-.08 (Class Size) for specifics.

      Note: Each *paraprofessional (para) is equivalent to 1/3 teacher and affects individual class size, caseload and system average proportionately. Three paras are the maximum number that can be used to increase the maximum class size for any special education class.

      Note: If children from different programs/delivery models are within the same segment, the class size shall be determined by the program/delivery model with the smallest class size. The caseloads shall be determined by averaging the respective caseloads.

      Note: The placement of children with autism, traumatic brain injury, or other health impairments, and significant developmental delays (grades K and above) in the above program areas will not change class sizes.

      Note: Children, with an IEP designating the service location for the delivery of goals and objectives to be the regular classroom environment, shall be reported in their special education program category if instruction is provided in a:

      1. A. Team/Collaborative Model; or
      2. B. Consultative Model.

Authority: O.C.G.A. Secs. 20-2-150, 20-2-152, 20-2-182, 20-2-240, 20-2-730, 20-2-759.

History. Original Rule entitled "Reintegration Process" adopted. F. Jan. 25, 1994; eff. Feb. 14, 1994.

Repealed: New Rule entitled "Student Management, Discipline and Suspension/Expulsion" adopted. F. Aug. 14, 2000; eff. Sept. 3, 2000.

Repealed: New Rule entitled "Personnel, Facilities and Caseloads" adopted. F. June 14, 2007; eff. July 4, 2007.