Steel Magnolias: Strengthening 619 Data Culture in Mississippi

A Date with Data

Reach out to us if you want to access Podcast resources, submit questions related to episodes, or share ideas for future topics. We’d love to hear from you!

You can contact us via the Podcast page on the IDC website at https://ideadata.org/.

### Episode Transcript ###
00:00:01.52 >> You're listening to "A Date With Data" with your host, Amy Bitterman.

00:00:07.34 >> Hey, it's Amy, and I am so excited to be hosting "A Date With Data." I'll be chatting with state and district special education staff who, just like you, are dealing with IDEA data every day.

00:00:19.50 >> "A Date With Data" is brought to you by the IDEA Data Center.

00:00:24.76 >> Hello, and welcome to "A Date With Data." On this episode, we're going to be throwing a spotlight on 619 data with Candice Taylor, who is the Early Childhood Special Education 619 Supervisor, and Becky Palculict, who is the 619 Coordinator, both with the Mississippi Department of Education. Thank you both so much for being on the podcast. And I would love to get things started by having you each say just a little bit about your role at the Department. Candice, do you want to kick us off?

00:00:59.81 >> Absolutely. Thanks for having us, Amy. So I am Candice Taylor. I have been with the Mississippi Department of Education for 9 years. This is my 28th year in education. I've done all kinds of special education work in public schools over the years, and I've been ... I was 619 Coordinator for several years and then finally was able to grow our team, and now I have Becky.

00:01:23.44 >> Yes, Becky, what about you? Tell us about your role.

00:01:27.40 >> Well, again, thank you for having us. I am Dr. Becky Palculict. I am the 619 Coordinator. I took Candice's place, and she has been a great mentor to me. This is my 32nd year in education, all in special ed. I have enjoyed learning everything there is to learn about preschool education. And I ... My primarily ... My job is to provide technical assistance, answer questions or whatever for the districts within our state and to help them with whatever it is they need help with.

00:02:09.19 >> Okay, so all things 619. That is ...

00:02:12.00 >> Yes ...

00:02:12.57 >> That is you.

00:02:13.05 >> ... all things 619.

00:02:15.39 >> Great, so we have the right people on the call on this podcast episode, because that's what we're going to be digging into, is 619 world. And to kind of set the stage, can you start off by just telling us kind of the data story of your 619 indicators?

00:02:33.84 >> So I've always done this work in what I feel like are three buckets: indicator six, indicator seven and indicator 12.

00:02:40.66 >> Mm-hmm.

00:02:41.18 >> And we ... I've tried to do work on each one of those as we've gone along, and as far as our indicator six, we really ... We don't have universal pre-K in our state, so that's one of the things that we've really worked on a lot over the years, is trying to increase the number of seats for preschoolers, particularly in general education programs. That's what we really want, is to really help that LRE data.

00:03:07.84 >> Yep.

00:03:08.07 >> And one of the ways we've done that is offering what we call the blended program where we provide funding to school districts to have them start new classes that are gen ed classes but to make sure they include children with disabilities so that we can increase those opportunities for our children.

00:03:30.51 >> Mm-hmm.

00:03:31.04 >> As far as our indicator seven data, we have changed our process for how we collect that data over the last few years. We have gone from a single screener to the child outcome summary process, and so that's kind of been where that work has moved and is moving toward now.

00:03:50.87 >> Mm-hmm.

00:03:52.05 >> And as far as our indicator 12 work, we do joint trainings with our part C folks, and we really try to keep ongoing communication with them. And we're actually looking to increase that connection with them. We are about to hire a coordinator for our team that is specific to the CSPD, the Comprehensive System of Personnel Development.

00:04:16.02 >> Mm-hmm.

00:04:16.30 >> So we'll be able to have that person really work on those connections with part C, as well. Get that data up.

00:04:22.54 >> Yeah, that's wonderful, having especially someone that part of their position is focusing on that, because I think that tends to sometimes fall by the wayside, or it is kind of a little piece of what one person is responsible for and doesn't always get the attention that it needs. So that's exciting. Can you talk about some data quality challenges that you've encountered over the years? And what are some ways that you've tried to address them?

00:04:50.26 >> So one of the big things that has happened during my time doing this work is historically our state used a single screener to collect data for indicator seven. And when the time came for our contract to end with that provider, we decided to move to the Child Outcome Summary Process because so many states and territories use it, both in part B and part C.

00:05:15.67 >> Mm-hmm.

00:05:16.46 >> And what we really ... We really felt like that single screener was only giving us a snapshot of what the child could do.

00:05:25.02 >> Mm-hmm.

00:05:25.35 >> And we really felt like if we moved to that COS process, that would give us more of a whole picture of the child. So we're still a little early yet in the process to see what that data looks like, but we anticipate a real increase in the quality of our data since it's not just that single screener that's determining the child's outcomes but really letting the IEP committee decide and talk about the progress that the child has made. So that's been a big one for us. And, Becky, you've also worked on some data things for indicator 12, as well. Do you want to talk about that?

00:06:04.84 >> With indicator 12, the data team and I have met, and we'd meet twice a month about whatever data it is that we need to be speaking about.

00:06:14.93 >> Mm-hmm.

00:06:15.70 >> We have revamped how the districts and part C ... part B and part C talk. We require the districts to contact part C monthly and then provide us with a report to help us know that there is a communication between them now, and we take that data and look at it to see what it is that's needed. And I believe it's really helped with knowing what the transitioning of children from part C to part B.

00:06:52.06 >> We're also using technology to try to increase our communication, as well. We changed our notification system, and so now in addition to the our technology folks who are in a different office than us, Becky and I also receive a notification when we receive data from the part C side because our systems are not connected. We hope someday they will be, but historically and right now they've not been. And so receiving that notification lets us know that that communication is still flowing.

00:07:21.75 >> Great, and that's a step in the right direction, it seems, to getting it all fully connected.

00:07:26.11 >> Absolutely.

00:07:26.45 >> And then once you get the notification, does that go to the district, as well, or do you then have to pass it off to the district?

00:07:32.70 >> So our technology folks do that that are able to put that information in our student information system that we use for our state.

00:07:39.66 >> Okay.

00:07:39.75 >> And that way, districts get notified. But that lets us know that things are still moving along.

00:07:45.46 >> Yes, yes, and that ... Yeah. That seems probably not completely seamless at this point, but at least there is that process that is being followed, and it seems like things can happen fairly timely, hopefully, doing it that way. So we talk a lot about data culture and trying to build the capacity of the districts and SEA staff around data culture. What are some ways in Mississippi that you're really trying to strengthen the data culture?

00:08:17.47 >> Well, as Candice had mentioned, we have been meeting with the part B friends that we have. We provided joint training across the states and regional training with different districts and those that might need the training and provided assistance with them that way. Then we also provide technical assistance and monitoring to the different districts as they are trying to understand this new COS process that we're doing.

00:08:52.89 >> Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

00:08:53.78 >> Many of the districts are still ... Even though this is, I believe, our third year into the COS process, they're still trying to determine how they do it because they've had turnover in the people who were trained in it to begin with.

00:09:09.90 >> Yeah. Mm-hmm.

00:09:10.78 >> So we're retraining people, and it's getting there. They're learning, and they're understanding the process of how it's all supposed to work and come together cohesively.

00:09:22.40 >> Yeah, that's probably a challenge that goes without saying, is turnover.

00:09:25.68 >> Mm-hmm.

00:09:26.03 >> I know we're not the only ones in our state with that problem. We ... Other states are experiencing that, as well. It is hard to retain people in our school districts, and so even though we train and we train, we feel like every year we kind of start over with some folks, having to provide additional training to people who are new.

00:09:46.02 >> We actually have been out to many districts that have come together and gotten neighboring districts together, and I've provided a little small regional training and been there for them to ask those questions so that there's a lot more understanding, I believe. And then knowing that they can contact me ...

00:10:10.27 >> Mm-hmm.

00:10:11.01 >> ... and ask any question that they have has gone a long way because pretty much daily, I get an e-mail or a phone call that says, "Hey, can you help me with this?"

00:10:20.75 >> Mm-hmm.

00:10:21.05 >> And if I don't know, I'm sure I find the answer, and I get right back with them. So that technical assistance has really helped throughout the state with the ...

00:10:32.78 >> One of the things about being able to build our team that has been so great is that when it was just me, I had a very limited capacity as to being able to stay in touch with the data. And so one of the things that Becky and I have talked about from her very first day is that I really wanted that. I wanted her to get connected because we, Becky and I, work in the Office of Early Childhood. Our data folks, our data manager and all of our data team, they work in the Office of Special Education, and so we don't live together.

00:11:05.70 >> Mm-hmm.

00:11:05.91 >> We're not even in the same building.

00:11:07.34 >> Oh, boy.

00:11:07.78 >> And so one of the things I really wanted Becky to be able to do when she came on was to be able to coordinate more often. And so she's been able to have meetings with the data team and herself, just really trying to keep up with what's going on instead of waiting until data gets done yearly and then find out after the fact.

00:11:30.47 >> Yeah, that's one thing, just having worked with you all in Mississippi for a while. There definitely is a very strong relationship and connection, it seems like, between you all with 619 and part B data and the program side of things there, too, so that's a real plus, I think, when you have those tighter relationships, especially around the data. What are some plans you have for moving forward and continuing to improve the quality of your 619 data?

00:12:01.02 >> We have actually got more training throughout the districts planned. Also, I have ... Mississippi was chosen among four states to be part of a cohort to ... It's basically the trainer cohort, but to be able to use the COS process to make the IEPs better, being able to use those outcomes to write the goals so that they are more appropriate and to write the IEPs as smart IEPs for the children as they move into kindergarten and first grade. And so the plan is once the cohort is over, the team that has been picked to go and do the training, they come back and do regional trainings across the state with the districts so that they can learn how to use those exit outcome summaries and scores to write better IEPs that are more appropriate for the children as they move through their kindergarten and first-grade years and further education.

00:13:24.68 >> That's really exciting, because that's a great example of we collect all this data. Well, how are we using it? Sometimes we don't use it for a whole lot beyond kind of our compliance and the standard reporting that you need to do. But this is a great way to show how you're really going to use that data. To make changes and improvements, so ...

00:13:46.11 >> Right. Make it cohesive. Move through the pre-K, kindergarten, first-grade years and beyond. I'm really excited about it. We all are.

00:13:57.32 >> And that's one of the things that we continue to struggle with, we feel like our districts kind of struggle with, is it's not about collecting data to check off a box to submit to the state so that we can submit to The Feds. It's about seeing where our children are and how to provide better services for them, more appropriate services, to increase their outcomes.

00:14:20.73 >> Right.

00:14:20.83 >> And that's the big thing that we're trying to help districts understand. It's not just about those numbers. It's about boys and girls and helping them have the best outcomes they possibly can.

00:14:31.57 >> Yeah, absolutely. Well, thank you both so much. Learned a lot about what's going on around 619 data, and sounds like some really wonderful work happening and coming up soon, so thank you both so much for sharing your story.

00:14:49.96 >> Thank you for having us.

00:14:51.09 >> Yes, thank you.

00:14:53.84 >> To access podcast resources, submit questions related to today's episode, or if you have ideas for future topics, we'd love to hear from you. The links are in the episode content. Or connect with us via the podcast page on the IDC website at ideadata.org.