C6.02 - Approve the Master Services Agreement between The School Board of Hillsborough County, Florida and Progressus Therapy (Progressus) to Implement the INVO Multidisciplinary Program (Climate and Culture)

Progressus is an educational firm dedicated to serving children through a variety of services. Progressus specializes in providing occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech and language pathology, audiology, mental and behavioral health counseling, psychology, behavior analysis, social work, sign language and interpretation, school nursing, special instruction, and paraprofessional service providers to infants, toddlers, and school-aged children with various developmental delays.

Specifically, in terms of this agreement, Progressus will work with the District to implement the INVO Multidisciplinary Program to Address Childhood Trauma (IMPACT). The IMPACT program is designed to provide the requisite level of comprehensive mental and behavioral health services to students who are at-risk for or who are dealing with mental health conditions including students with disabilities. Many of these conditions are rooted in elevated numbers of adverse childhood experiences (ACE): emotional, physical, and sexual abuse, neglect, parent separation/divorce, witness to domestic violence, mental illness, incarceration, death of family members, and substance abuse.

The IMPACT program will be delivered by qualified mental health professionals hired by Progressus who receive training and/or certification as a registered behavior technician, licensed clinical social workers, licensed or master's level mental health counselors, licensed marriage and family therapists, and board-certified behavior analysts. IMPACT clinicians provide the children with intense, regular support to eradicate or manage the barriers that impede academic progress and performance and, often lead to truancy and behavior problems both in and out of school. The district will identify targeted schools based on mental health data collection and student to mental health professional recommended ratios. Given the challenges and uncertainty around COVID-19 and school openings, services are currently being provided 100 percent via telehealth. Per reopening plans of the District, clinicians are prepared to resume in-person supports as soon as the District deems appropriate. Once Progressus staff are able to return to a physical school setting, services will be delivered in the students' existing school(s) with sessions via telehealth and at home on a case-by-case basis. Implementation planning and delivery of mental health and behavior services will be initiated during the terms of the agreement of October 21, 2020, through June 30, 2022.

The Florida legislation states that school districts will work to increase access to mental health services for students.  To adhere to the legislative requirements, Hillsborough County Public Schools will work to meet the nationally recommended ratio model of school-based mental health professionals to students by providing an increase in direct services. The proposed IMPACT program implementation would consist of 15 full-time qualified mental health professionals, clinical supervision support and service, and up to 5 full-time board-certified behavioral analysts and can serve 500 - 600 students at a given time (which usually results in an estimated 650 - 800 students served annually) in grades Kindergarten-12, and their families. In addition to the direct service providers listed above, the program is supported by company resources, including clinical leadership, program development, research/evaluation in collaboration with a Research 1 University, and family support.

A program evaluation was conducted with the staff of Clemson University Center for Behavior Analysis, the Office of Research and Organizational Development of the Youth Learning Institute at Clemson University, and INVO Healthcare, Inc.  The purpose of the evaluation was to provide an exploratory analysis of the efficacy of an alternative treatment model primarily for elementary aged students with a moderate to high number of ACE combining mental and behavioral health services being delivered on a public school campus by the INVO Healthcare, Inc. IMPACT program.

This analysis was focused on evaluation of broad categories including academic performance, behavioral challenges, and attendance over a two to three academic year period beginning in 2017 with the overall goal being to examine if more intensive intervention resulted in improved academic performance, increased attendance, and fewer behavioral challenges for at-risk students. Results indicated that by comparison of change from baseline year to intervention year, the IMPACT participants showed more positive changes in attendance than the non-IMPACT participants. In terms of behavior, results indicated that participation in the IMPACT program reduced the risk of receiving an office discipline referral (ODR). Results also indicate that the intervention became more successful at reducing ODRs for participants as the year progressed.

This is the first agreement between the Board and Progressus to implement the IMPACT program. This school year will serve as a base line year in terms of implementation of the IMPACT program.

Outcomes for students who participate in the IMPACT program will be improved emotional wellness and increased knowledge in the skills needed to be behaviorally, emotionally, and academically successful. It is anticipated that initial involvement with the IMPACT team will be more intensive, but as intervention becomes effective, the need for frequent support and monitoring will be reduced.  The transition phase will involve transferring treatment authority and efficacy to the school staff and caregivers using a plan that is mutually agreed to by all parties including the student. It is expected that the amount of parental/caregiver involvement in this phase will increase as the IMPACT team focuses on empowering the caregivers, school staff, and students without the need for intensive support a maintenance plan.

* Improve the high school graduation rate

* Provide a student-centered learning environment that engages every child

* Improve Student Achievement

* Engage and communicate with families and stakeholders

* Continuously improve processes and systems

* Demonstrate "best practices" in all aspects of safety: student, employee, visitor, facility, transportation, and health

Approve the Master Services Agreement with Progressus to implement the IMPACT program.

Elizabeth Tanner, Supervisor, Emotional Wellness, elizabeth.tanner@sdhc.k12.fl.us, (813) 273-7192
Holly Saia, Ed.S., General Director, Student Services, holly.saia@sdhc.k12.fl.us, (813) 273-7136
Tracye H. Brown, Chief of Climate and Culture, tracye.brown@hcps.net, (813) 272-4879

Purchases will not exceed the amount of $1,187,500 from the Mental Health Assistance Allocation (Project 4533) and $372,500 from the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Grant (Project 0200).