Educational programs and services to students with disabilities enrolled in day treatment programs shall be provided in accordance with this section and those other applicable provisions of this Part that are not inconsistent with this section.
(a) Definitions. As used in this section:
(1) Day treatment programs means nonresidential programs, certified by the Office of Mental Health, designed for the purpose of providing a comprehensive array of services for mentally ill students with disabilities through integrated mental health and special education programs.
(2) Treatment planning means the process of determining the student's need for mental health services and developing a specific treatment plan which includes provision of educational services.
(3) Treatment team means a team composed of professional and paraprofessional clinical staff members of the day treatment program, including the student's special education teacher.
(b) Eligibility of students with disabilities.
(1) A student with a disability who has been admitted to a day treatment program in accordance with such program's admission criteria is eligible for placement in the educational component of such day treatment program, if such placement is appropriate to such student's special educational needs.
(2) The determination of the existence of a disability and the recommendation of appropriate special education programs and services shall be the responsibility of the committee on special education of the school district of the student's residence. Such determinations and recommendations for students admitted to a day treatment program shall be based on consultation with the program's treatment team.
(c) Individual evaluation. In addition to conducting an individual evaluation pursuant to the requirements of section 200.4(b) of this Part, the committee on special education shall assure that appropriate staff participate in the treatment planning conducted by the treatment team. The evaluation shall include an assessment by the day treatment program' s special education teacher and other appropriate professional staff of the day treatment program.
(d) Recommendation.
(1) The results of the individual evaluation described in subdivision (c) of this section, as well as the suggestions of the treatment team, including the type, frequency and duration of services needed to meet the student's mental health and educational needs, shall be used in the development of the individualized education program (IEP).
(2) Individualized education program (IEP). The IEP shall be developed, pursuant to section 200.4 of this Part, in meetings of the committee on special education. A representative of the treatment team shall be given the opportunity to attend. In the event that such representative is unable to attend such meetings, the committee shall attempt alternative means of assuring the representative's participation, such as individual or conference telephone discussions, and such attempts shall be documented. Referral to the committee on special education for review of the IEP shall be conducted pursuant to section 200.4(d) of this Part.
(e) Student progress reports.
(1) Each student's individualized education program (IEP) shall be reexamined by the student's special education teacher and professional staff of the day treatment program at least once every three months for a period of one year after the student's enrollment and at least twice a year thereafter. Progress reports based on these reexaminations shall be forwarded to the committee on special education within 30 days of such review.
(2) Referral to the committee on special education for review of the IEP shall be conducted pursuant to section 200.4(d)(2) of this Part and subdivision (d) of this section.
(3) An annual review and reevaluation of each student's IEP shall be conducted pursuant to section 200.4(b) and (f) of this Part and subdivision (d) of this section.
(f) Grouping for instruction. Students with disabilities enrolled in day treatment programs may be grouped for instruction based on similarity of individual mental health needs, when such needs prevent the student from benefiting from instructional groupings pursuant to section 200.6(h) of this Part, as determined by the professional staff of the day treatment program.