New Jersey Administrative Code
Title 6A - EDUCATION
Chapter 13A - ELEMENTS OF HIGH QUALITY PRESCHOOL PROGRAMS
Subchapter 4 - PROGRAM STAFFING
Section 6A:13A-4.4 - Intervention and support services
Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 6, March 18, 2024
(a) The district board of education shall establish a preschool intervention and referral specialist (PIRS) at a 1:20 ratio of PIRS to preschool classrooms. School districts with more than 20 preschool classrooms shall also create a team of specialists, including the PIRS, using a consultative model as part of the intervention and referral services. The services shall be funded by the school district's preschool budget, as described in the school district's three-year preschool program plan and/or annual update. The position(s) may be:
(b) For school districts with fewer than 20 preschool classrooms, the PIRS may be fulfilled in one of the following ways:
(c) The PIRS shall be supervised by the early childhood school district administrator and shall work within a consultation model with relevant school district, private provider, and local Head Start agency staff and administrators to deliver preschool age-appropriate services designed to decrease referrals to special education and to maximize general education classroom teachers' ability to support all students.
(d) The PIRS position and/or team may be comprised of preschool teachers, psychologists, learning disabilities teacher consultants, school social workers, and speech and language specialists who shall have knowledge of the school district's curriculum and assessment and who shall either have experience working with preschool-aged children or acquire knowledge of the content and skills relevant to working with preschool-aged children through training, coursework, and/or professional development, as determined and provided for by the school district.
(e) The PIRS shall, at a minimum:
(f) The district board of education shall annually report the number of children served by the PIRS and the number of children referred to the child study team for formal evaluation in its three-year preschool program plan and/or annual update.
(g) The district board of education shall ensure that preschool students are not suspended, long-term or shortterm, and are not expelled from school, except as provided pursuant to the Zero Tolerance for Guns Act, N.J.S.A. 18A:37-7 et seq.