Greenwood School District 50

Office of Computing Services

 

EFA Coding for Homebound Students

September 14, 2005

DRAFT

Introduction

Last spring, the state audited the district’s EFA coding for homebound students during the 2003-2004 school year.  Following that audit, the district had to return a significant amount of money to the state because of incorrectly coded student during that school year.

 

We are sure that the same types of errors exist in the 2004-2005 SASIxp data, although we have not been audited for that year.  Additionally, we are sure that similar errors are being made this year – and we want to correct any errors that have already been made and prevent additional errors from being made in this school year. 

 

Glennis Cannon, Lou Ann Corley, and I met to discuss the issues with EFA coding for homebound students.  We believe there is some confusion about the state’s legal definition of “homebound” for EFA purposes.  That confusion is possible related to “homebased” students served by special services.  The two are NOT related.

 

There may also be some confusion with an absence code called “homebound” – which has nothing to do with EFA codes or special services.

 

The purpose of this document is to define carefully and precisely how each is used and to provide direction about correcting existing errors in the current SASIxp databases.

 

EFA Code for Homebound (HO)

A student must be given an EFA code of HO if that student shows a doctor’s form stating that he or she cannot attend school because of an illness or an injury – and instructional services will be provided while the student is at home. 

 

Note 1:  The EFA code of HO can be used ONLY FOR MEDICAL HOMEBOUND STATUS NOT RELATED TO SPECIAL EDUCATION STATUS.

 

Note 2:  The EFA code of HO CANNOT BE USED FOR STUDENTS WHO ARE HOMEBASED BECAUSE OF THEIR SPECIAL EDUCATION STATUS.

 

Note 3:  The EFA code of HO CANNOT BE USED FOR STUDENTS WHO ARE GIVEN ADMINISTRATIVE HOME ASSIGNMENTS – even if those home assignments are related to the students’ special education status.

 

Note 4:  The EFA code of HO CANNOT BE ASSIGNED TO A STUDENT UNTIL A TEACHER IS ASSIGNED to serve that student.

 

Note 5:  Children who are living in shelters for the homeless or for other family services CAN be assigned an EFA code of HO only if you receive documentation or official notification from the District’s Office of School Parental Involvement.

 

Note 6:  Official EFA “homebound” status is determined by the District’s Office of School Parental Involvement – and that is determined solely by the appropriate doctor’s statement or the appropriate shelter statement.

 

IEP Status for Homebased

A student is “homebased” if and only if the student has an IEP and that IEP states specifically that the student should be served at home (or away from the school environment) – and instructional services will be provided while the student is at home.

 

Note 7:  “Homebased” CANNOT be given an EFA code of HO.

 

Note 8:  The EFA code for a “homebased” student must be the EFA code for the disability for which the student is being “homebased.”

 

Note 9:  Only the District’s Office of Special Services can determine “homebased” status and that is determined solely by the student’s IEP.

 

Administrative Home Assignments

Administrative home assignments for students are typically made when a student’s behavior requires that he or she not attend class – and that behavior has nothing to do with an illness, injury, or IEP.  Students who are given administrative home assignments cannot be given an EFA code of HO because they have no doctor’s note.  They are not considered to be homebased because they have no IEP.

 

Note 10:  A student who is given an administrative home assignment CANNOT be given an EFA code of HO.

 

Absence Code of Homebound

In SASIxp, there is an absence code of HOM, which is named “homebound.”  That code and name are determined by the state as part of the state template and we are not able to change that.  The absence code of HOM is NOT related to the EFA code (HO) for homebound and it is NOT related to the IEP status of homebased.

 

The state has not given clear instructions on the use of the HOM absence code; however, several districts in the state use it to mark a student’s attendance so the district knows the student is “present” but at home.  This can be important in the event of an emergency situation where someone is trying to account for all students who should have been present but cannot be accounted for.  The HOM code for each day will be a clear indicator that the student is not at school and does not have to be accounted for in an emergency situation.

 

I recommend strongly that we begin using the HOM attendance code EACH DAY for each student who is either “homebound,” “homebased,” or on administrative home assignment.  This attendance code would be entered administratively at each school for each day for each such student.

 

Note 11:  The absence code HOM is NOT related to EFA coding or IEP status.

 

Note 12:  The absence code HOM is NOT related to administrative home assignments for students.

 

Note 13:  The absence code HOM should be used IN ATTENDANCE to designate the daily status of homebound, homebased, and home-assigned students.

 

Conclusion

I recommend that “homebound” determinations be made by a centralized authority instead of at each school (see Note 6, above).  This will standardize the recordkeeping and improve quality control over the data.

 

These student designations – homebound, homebased, home assigned – should be discussed by Senior Staff to determine the implications and ramifications for each of their offices.  The coding has funding, staffing, administrative, and instructional implications.

 

In the mean time, schools should be instructed to review all EFA coding to correct errors related to the issues raised in this document.  Staff development for SASIxp operators and decision-makers who provide information to the SASIxp operators should be planned and delivered as soon as possible.