• EXCEPTIONALITY: Emotional/Behavioral Disability
    • A student with an emotional/behavioral disability has persistent and consistent emotional and/or behavioral responses that adversely affect performance in the educational environment.
    • These behaviors/responses have not been resolved/remediated through the implementation evidence-based interventions
    • E/BD can only be determined if the behavior/responses cannot be attributed to age, culture, gender, or ethnicity
    • A student must exhibit one or more of the following factors/characteristics for a period of 6 months or more in order to constitute an emotional/behavioral disability:
      • Feelings of sadness, or frequent crying, or restlessness, or loss of interest in friends and/or school work, or mood swings, or erratic behavior
      • The presence of symptoms such as fears, phobias, or excessive worrying and anxiety regarding personal or school problems
      • Behaviors that result from thoughts and feelings that are inconsistent with actual events or circumstances, or difficulty maintaining normal thought processes, or excessive levels of withdrawal from persons or events
      • An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers, teachers, and other adults in the school setting
      • Behaviors that are chronic and disruptive such as noncompliance, verbal and/or physical aggression, and/or poorly developed social skills that are manifestations of feelings, symptoms, or behaviors found in in the first 3 sub-bullets
    • Levels and intensity of services for students qualified with an E/BD exceptionality vary based on the needs, as determined by the Individual Education Plan Team, IEP Team
    • Most students with E/BD will respond to evidence-based interventions developed through a problem-solving process and implemented with fidelity
    • Some students with E/BD will need specially designed instruction and related services beyond general education resources and supports to sustain adequate progress in the learning environment
    • The IEP Team may determine that a student meets specific eligibility criteria to receive direct services from the Intensive Behavior Intervention-3 Program, a special class placement

    DISTRICT CONTACT

    Sonja Samek, ESE Coordinator
    (239) 377-4779
    SamekS@collierschools.com

    INFORMATION & RESOURCES

    ORGANIZATION/RESOURCE HYPERLINK

    BRIEF DESCRIPTION

    Florida Department of Education – Emotional/Behavioral Disability

    The definition, eligibility criteria, and resources for Emotional/Behavioral Disability from the Florida Department of Education.

    The Children's Advocacy Center of Collier:

    The Children's Advocacy Center of Collier County (CACCC) is a nonprofit agency that provides a coordinated, multi-agency approach to the investigation, intervention, and treatment of child sexual and physical abuse.

    Collier H.U.G.S.

    Health Under Guided Systems, H.U.G.S.

    Health Under Guided Systems (HUGS) is offered as a no cost, community-based, children’s behavioral health program.

    The David Lawrence Center, DLC

    DLC provides mental health and substance abuse services to children, adults and families in need in Southwest Florida. 

    National Alliance for the Mentally Ill 

    NAMI, Collier County

    NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness.

    SEDNET

    SEDNET(8B) Promotes a system of unified care, multi-agency partnerships, positive provider-family relationships, integrated education, mental health, social services, optimal, accessible services for students with emotional/behavioral disorders and their families.

    Youth Haven of Southwest Florida

    Youth Haven provides several programs including The Child and Family Counseling Center, The Emergency Shelter, The Family Support and Prevention Services and the Homeless and Runaway Youth Program.