§ 328.3 - What priorities may the Secretary fund under this program?

(a) Under § 328.2(a), the Secretary may support projects that include, but are not limited to—

(1) Studies regarding the present state of special education and related services to children and youth with serious emotional disturbance and their families, including information and data to enable assessments of the status of those services over time;

(2) Developing methodologies and curricula designed to improve special education and related services for these children and youth;

(3) Developing and demonstrating strategies and approaches to reduce the use of out-of-community residential programs and to encourage the increased use of school district-based programs, which may include day treatment programs, after-school programs, and summer programs;

(4) Developing the knowledge, skills and strategies for effective collaboration among special education, regular education, related services, and other professionals and agencies; or

(5) Developing and demonstrating innovative approaches to assist and to prevent children with emotional and behavioral problems from developing serious emotional disturbances that require the provision of special education and related services.

(b) Under § 328.2(b), the Secretary may support demonstration projects that include, but are not limited to—

(1) Increasing the availability, access, and quality of community services for children and youth with serious emotional disturbance and their families;

(2) Improving working relationships among education, school, and community mental health and other relevant personnel, families of those children and youth, and their advocates;

(3) Targeting resources to school settings, such as providing access to school or community mental health professionals or both and other community resources for students with serious emotional disturbance who are in community school settings; and

(4) Taking into account the needs of minority children and youth in all phases of project activity.