22 Pa. Code § 14.105 - Personnel
(a)
Paraprofessionals.
(1) An
instructional paraprofessional is a school employee who works under the
direction of a certificated staff member to support and assist in providing
instructional programs and services to children with disabilities or eligible
young children. The support and assistance includes one-on-one or group review
of material taught by certificated staff, classroom management and
implementation of positive behavior support plans. Services may be provided in
a special education class, regular education class or other instructional
setting as provided in the student's IEP. Instructional paraprofessionals shall
meet one of the following qualifications effective July 1, 2010:
(i) Have completed at least 2 years of
postsecondary study.
(ii) Possess
an associate degree or higher.
(iii) Meet a rigorous standard of quality as
demonstrated through a State or local assessment.
(2) Nothing in subsection (a) should be
construed to supersede the terms of a collective bargaining agreement in effect
on July 1, 2008.
(3) Instructional
paraprofessionals, each school year, shall provide evidence of 20 hours of
staff development activities related to their assignment.
(4) A personal care assistant provides
one-to-one support and assistance to a student, including support and
assistance in the use of medical equipment (for example, augmentative
communication devices; activities of daily living; and monitoring health and
behavior). A personal care assistant may provide support to more than one
student, but not at the same time. Personal care assistants shall provide
evidence of 20 hours of staff development activities related to their
assignment each school year. The 20 hours of training may include training
required by the school-based access program.
(b)
Educational interpreters
. An educational interpreter is an individual who provides students who are
deaf or hard of hearing with interpreting or transliterating services in an
educational setting.
(1) To serve as an
educational interpreter, an individual shall meet the qualifications in
subparagraph (i) or (ii) and subparagraph (iii):
(i) Achieve and provide evidence of a score
of 3.5 on the Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment (EIPA) for the
appropriate grade level to which the person has been assigned.
(ii) Be a qualified sign language interpreter
or qualified transliterator under the Sign Language Interpreter and
Transliterator Registration Act (63 P.S. §§ 1725.1-1725.12) and its implementing
regulations.
(iii) Provide evidence
of a minimum of 20 hours of staff development activities relating to
interpreting or transliterating services annually.
(2) The Board, in consultation with the
Department, will review the EIPA score requirement every 2
years.
(c)
Caseload.
(1) The following
words and terms, when used in this subsection, have the following meanings,
unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
(i)
Full-time. Special
education supports and services provided by special education personnel for 80%
or more of the school day.
(ii)
Itinerant. Special education supports and services provided by
special education personnel for 20% or less of the school day.
(iii)
Supplemental. Special
education supports and services provided by special education personnel for
more than 20% but less than 80% of the school day.
(2) The following chart represents the
maximum number of students allowed on a teacher's caseload:
| Itinerant (20% or Less) | Supplemental (Less Than 80% but More Than 20%) | Full-Time (80% or More) | |
| Learning Support | 50 | 20 | 12 |
| Life Skills Support | 20 | 20 | 12 (Grades K-6) 15 (Grades 7-12) |
| Emotional Support | 50 | 20 | 12 |
| Deaf And Hearing Impaired Support | 50 | 15 | 8 |
| Blind And Visually Impaired Support | 50 | 15 | 12 |
| Speech And Language Support | 65 | 8 | |
| Physical Support | 50 | 15 | 12 |
| Autistic Support | 12 | 8 | 8 |
| Multiple Disabilities Support | 12 | 8 | 8 |
(3) Each student with a disability shall be
assigned to a special education teacher's caseload.
(4) A school district may request approval
for a caseload chart that varies from that in paragraph (2) as part of its
special education plan consistent with §
14.104 (relating to special
education plans). The caseload and supporting documents submitted must:
(i) Ensure the ability of assigned staff to
provide the services required in each student's IEP.
(ii) Apply to special education classes
operated in the school district.
(iii) Provide a justification for why the
chart deviates from the caseload chart in paragraph (2).
(iv) Describe the opportunities for parents,
teachers and other interested parties to review and comment on the chart prior
to its submission. The district shall provide and include a copy of the notice
to the public indicating the district intends to request a waiver of caseload
regulations and a description of how parents, teachers and other interested
parties were provided opportunities to give comment on the waiver
request.
(5) Classes or
programs with students from more than one district, regardless of whether
operated by a school district, intermediate unit or agency, shall follow the
caseload chart of the district where the class or program is located.
Intermediate unit services provided to multiple districts must follow the
caseload chart under paragraph (2).
(6) Caseloads are not applicable to approved
private schools or to chartered schools for the deaf and blind.
(7) The Department may withdraw approval of
variance in the caseload chart for a school district if its caseload is
determined to be inadequate. The Department will consider at least the
following indicators when making the determination:
(i) Graduation rates of students with a
disability.
(ii) Drop-out rates of
students with a disability.
(iii)
Postsecondary transition of students with a disability.
(iv) Rate of grade level
retentions.
Notes
The provisions of this §14.105 issued under sections 1372 and 2603-B of the Public School Code of 1929 (24 P. S. §§ 13-1372 and 26-2603-B).
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