School Board Policy 707 - Addendum A - Transportation of Students Placed in Care and Treatment Programs
The White Bear Lake Area School District supports students who are receiving mental or chemical health services at care and treatment facilities in order to promote healthy development and continued learning.
1.0 Purpose
Consistent with the authority granted by Minnesota law, the purpose of this administrative guidance is to establish reasonable restrictions on the transportation of students who are temporarily placed for care and treatment in a day program and who continue to live within the boundaries of White Bear Lake Area School District No. 624 (“district”) during care and treatment.
2.0 Application
This administrative guidance applies to regular education and special education students who:
1. Are legal residents of the district
2. Are temporarily placed for care and treatment in a day program by a person or entity other than the district, a Minnesota court, or a Minnesota government agency
3. Continue to live in the district during the care and treatment
3.0 Definitions
For purposes of this administrative guidance, the following definitions apply:
3.1 Care and Treatment: Students who are placed in any of the following facilities are considered to be placed in “care and treatment”:
a. Chemical dependency and other substance abuse treatment centers
b. Shelter care facilities
c. Hospitals
d. Day treatment centers
e. Correctional facilities
f. Residential treatment centers
g. Mental health program facilities
Such facilities must be licensed by the Minnesota Department of Human Services or the Minnesota Department of Corrections.
3.2 Sufficient to Meet the Needs of the Student: This phrase means that the care and treatment facility provides treatment or services that are consistent with the established professional standard of care applicable to the individual needs of the student. In the event a student, parent, or legal guardian contends that a facility is not sufficient to meet the needs of the student, the student, parent, or legal guardian must provide a signed statement from a qualified physician explaining why the facility is not sufficient to meet the needs of the student.
3.3 Temporarily Placed for Care and Treatment: A student is “temporarily” placed for care and treatment if the placement is for less than sixty-five (65) consecutive school days or three (3) months, whichever is longer, in either a school year or a calendar year.
4.0 Reasonable Transportation Restrictions
4.1 Closer Facility: The District may refuse to transport a student to a care and treatment facility if another care and treatment facility is at least ten miles closer to the student’s home and is sufficient to meet the needs of the student.
The following exception applies: The District will provide transportation to the next closest facility that is covered by the student’s insurer and has an opening if:
a. The student’s parent or legal guardian submits written documentation to the district showing that the insurer has formally denied coverage for a requested placement at the closest facility or
b. The student’s parent or legal guardian submits written documentation to the district office showing that the closest facility has denied the requested placement.
4.2 Ten-Mile Radius: The District will restrict transportation for a student to or from the care and treatment facility closest to the school district and not to exceed up to ten (10) miles outside the district’s geographic boundaries.
4.3 Regular Operating Hours: The District will not transport a student to or from a care and treatment facility outside the district’s regular operating hours. The district is not responsible for and may not provide transportation when its schools are not in session.
4.4 Temporary Placement: The District may refuse to transport a student to or from a care and treatment facility for more than sixty-five (65) school days or three consecutive months, whichever is longer, in either a school year or a calendar year.