OUSD proposes an $8.2 million expansion of special-education mental-health services

What happened

OUSD proposed raising its Invo Healthcare contract ceiling from $70,000 to $8.27 million for unchanged intensive outpatient mental-health services through June 30, 2029. The district says more than 400 students have mental-health services in their IEPs, and its own staffing cannot provide the intensive support needed by the students Invo would serve.

Why it matters to families

The proposed contract would help OUSD continue federally and state-mandated mental-health services for students with disabilities and reduce the need to move some students into more restrictive placements; the district says students could otherwise lose services specified in their IEPs.

The evidence

The Sept. 23 board memorandum seeks approval of an additional $8,203,319, increasing the agreement ceiling from $70,000 to $8,273,319, with services and term unchanged through June 30, 2029. It says well over 400 students have mental-health services in their IEPs, OUSD cannot staff the intensive services internally, and extending Invo's service is needed to avoid loss of mandated services. The supplied minutes are marked pending, so this is reported as a proposal. (Document 97503; minutes 97516.)

The source