Student and Family Support Systems
Student Mental Health & Wellbeing at Southeast Polk
At Southeast Polk Community School District we are committed to providing student services to help children grow socially, emotionally, and academically. If your child is in need, please contact your school counselor. If your child is in crisis or at risk for suicide, please call 911 or take them to an emergency department for an immediate medical evaluation.
Southeast Polk schools partner with Employee and Family Resources to provide support for students. Established in 1964, Employee & Family Resources (EFR) is a non-profit human services organization in Des Moines, Iowa. EFR offers a unique spectrum of services in the realm of behavioral and emotional health, including in-person counseling, substance abuse assessment services, drug prevention work in central Iowa schools, and a full-service Employee Assistance Program (EAP) for businesses. EFR works to help people manage life’s challenges so they can reach their full potential.
EFR is located at 505 5th Avenue, Suite 600, in Des Moines, and can be reached at 515.244.6090.
Student Assistance Program (SAP)
The Student Assistance Program (SAP) is designed to help students, families, and schools manage the impact a wide variety of personal and family problems can have on student behavior and achievement. Free and confidential services, accessible 24/7 by calling 515.244.6090, include:
- Telephonic consultation for assistance on challenges you or your family may be facing
- In-person counseling with masters-level clinicians
- Referrals to community resources, if needed
Watch this video to learn more about counseling for our students: https://youtu.be/JJHj_kRhZvQ
All services can be interpreted to non-English-speaking clients at no additional cost.
Postvention
On March 29th, 2018, Senate File 2113 was signed by the governor requiring that all Iowa school districts provide staff training and protocols on suicide prevention/postvention. The goal of these training and protocols is to identify students with adverse childhood experiences and to develop strategies that “mitigate toxic stress response” based on nationally recognized practices. You can view the document here.
School-Based Mental Health Agencies
Southeast Polk has also established agreements with a variety of mental health providers who offer school-based therapy options in our buildings to a limited number of students. To check on availability and find out about the referral process, please contact the school counselor in your student’s building.
Crisis Lines:
- 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
- Your life Iowa – Call (855) 581-8111
Non Crisis:
- NAMI Iowa – Call 515-254-0417 – Weekdays 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM
- Iowa Office of Consumer Affairs: confidential mental health and resource referrals and system navigation by peer and family support specialists and to report gaps in services.
- Email: Info@ocaiowa.org
- In the case of Imminent danger to self or others
Access Polk County Mobile Crisis 24/7 by calling 911, OR proceed directly to
Clive Behavioral Health, 1450 NW 114th St, Clive (24/7)
Iowa Lutheran Hospital Emergency Department, 700 E University Ave, Des Moines (24/7)
UnityPoint Behavioral Health Urgent Care Clinic, 1250 E. 9th St., Des Moines (M-F 9am-5pm)
- If safety is not an immediate concern: Call the Resource and Referral line 24/7 at 515-288-0818 (staffed by Community Support Advocates).
CSA staff will complete a phone assessment and dispatch in-home crisis response or coordinate referral to residential crisis stabilization services within 120 minutes.
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- Call 911 in the case of imminent danger to self or others
Call Your Life Iowa – the statewide crisis line – at 855-581-8111.
Unsure Where to Get Help?
Contact United Way Des Moines: Dial 2-1-1 or go to their United Way 211 Website.
Know someone who needs support but doesn’t know where to get help? Just like calling 9-1-1 in an emergency, 2-1-1 is a three-digit helpline that connects anyone with local support and resources. All professionals are trained to quickly assess a caller’s needs and to identify the best possible solution. 2-1-1 is free, confidential, and available anytime 24/7.
Military Family Support Resources
At Southeast Polk we work to support students of military families. Schools can provide stability and a normal routine for children whose parents are deployed or are transferred between installations. The stresses that may result from family separation or moving to a new community may interfere with the ability of students to focus on learning. Here you will find resources for military students and their families to connect to programs and after-school activities provided in our community and by the U.S. military.
Resources:
District-Wide Community Resources
Caring Caring Hands is a network of Christian churches and community partners in the Southeast Polk region of Central Iowa, providing food, clothing, and household items to those in need.
Location: 602 3rd St. SW, Altoona IA 50009
Contact: 515.967.4533 – food pantry website
Altoona Kids Cafe is a Swerve Outreach program. Swerve provides basic needs assistance and opportunities to at-risk and underserved youth in Eastern Polk County, Iowa. For more information on signing your student up for free summer lunches, contact your student’s school counselor or look at the Kids Cafe website.
Please contact us if you are interested in lending a hand or joining them for lunch.
Location: Cross Cafe located inside Lutheran Church of the Cross, in Altoona.
Contact: altoonakidscafe@gmail.com
Through the Tools 4 School program, Swerve Outreach provides school supplies to a number of Southeast Polk students. If you need assistance, please reach out to your student’s school counselor.
The Altoona Elementary PTA organizes a Winter Warmth Drive to provide winter warmth to kids in the SEP district and kids in central Iowa. Please contact your school counselor for additional information.
Need assistance? Call United Way 211 to get connected and get answers. This service is available 24/7 and is confidential. www.211iowa.org. Contact United Way 2-1-1 by dialing 2-1-1 or 319-739-4211 or 1-866-469-2211.
You can contact Children and Families of Iowa – crisis line 515-243-6147.
Homelessness Youth Support System
Are you experiencing homelessness?
Please contact the following SEP staff for programs and services for children and youth experiencing homelessness.
Other Resources
Contact Centralized Intake for assistance. 1200 University. Phone (515) 248-1850. Monday – Friday 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Youth Opportunity Center for students ages 16-21. 612 Locust Street, Des Moines. Monday – Friday 12 p.m. – 6 p.m. Iowa Homeless Youth Center
Southeast Polk HomeSchool Assistance Program
The SEP HomeSchool Assistance Program (HSAP) is an alternative K-12 educational program open to families who choose to homeschool their children. Although the parent is the primary teacher, the Homeschool Assistance Program offers support for the families through regularly scheduled home visits with certified teachers. Students have the option to participate in enrichment classes, field trips, social activities, and standardized testing. Families may check out textbooks and resources available to K-12th grade students.
Homeschool students who choose to dual enroll may get involved with classes, activities, and services at their neighborhood school. Several of our students take advantage of Post Secondary Enrollment Options (PSEO) to take classes at DMACC and other area colleges.
For additional information please contact Brittany Kunz
Phone: 515.967.4294 ext.1011
Fax: 515.967.4257
Private instruction means instruction using a plan and a course of study in a setting other than a public or organized accredited nonpublic school. Iowa Code section 299A.1 (2) (c). It includes competent private instruction (by a licensed practitioner or a non-licensed person), independent private instruction, home school assistance programs, and non-accredited nonpublic schools.
Competent Private Instruction (CPI) is private instruction provided on a daily basis for at least one hundred forty-eight days during a school year, to be met by attendance for at least thirty-seven days each school quarter, by or under the supervision of a licensed practitioner in the manner provided under Iowa Code section 299A.2 and this chapter, or other person under Iowa Code section 299A.3 and this chapter, which results in the student making adequate progress. The CPI category includes homeschooled children who are not enrolled in independent private instruction and those in non-accredited nonpublic “schools.” 281-IAC chapter 31.
Option 1: Private Instruction under the supervision of a licensed practitioner
Under Option 1 a parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian simply completes the report of Competent Private Instruction (Form A- available from the district of residence) and returns it to the resident district by September 1 or within 14 days of commencing CPl.
NOTE: However, if a child has been identified as requiring special education programs or services, prior written approval must be obtained from the special education director of the Area Education Agency (AEA) in which the child resides before the child may be homeschooled or enrolled in a non-accredited nonpublic “school.” This consent is not required if the parent, guardian, legal, or actual custodian does not consent to initial evaluation or to re-evaluation of the child for receipt of special education services or programs. Iowa Code sections 299.4, 299A.9; 281-IAC rules 31.5(1) (f), 31.10.
Option 2: Private Instruction by a non-licensed person
Under Option 2 a parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian may meet, but is not required to meet, all of the following requirements:
- Complete and send, in a timely manner the report required under Iowa Code section 299.4 and this rule to the school district of residence of the child.
- Ensure that the child under the parent’s, guardian’s, or legal custodian’s instruction is evaluated annually to determine whether the child is making adequate progress as defined in Iowa Code section 299.a.6 and this chapter.
- Ensure that the results of the child’s annual evaluation are reported to the school district of residence of the child and to the department of education by a date not later than June 30 of each year in which the child is under competent private instruction. This is known as the “private instruction exemption.”
A parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian who chooses Option 2 with no reporting under the private instruction exemption relinquishes the ability to dual enroll for academics, extracurricular activities, or special education services. Dual enrollment requires compliance with the reporting requirements of Iowa Code section 299.4 and the assessment requirements of 299A.4. A parent who dual enrolls for academics, athletics, or special education services relinquishes the option to utilize the private instruction exemption and must complete Form A.
A parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian who chooses Option 2 and chooses not to report to the district may wish to provide the district notice of the decision to use the private instruction exemption. Doing so will create a presumption that a child of compulsory attendance age is in compliance with the compulsory attendance requirements of Iowa Code Chapter 299.
Note: If a child has been identified as requiring special education programs or services, prior written approval must be obtained from the special education director of the Area Education Agency (AEA) in which the child resides before the child may be homeschooled or enrolled in a non-accredited nonpublic “school.” This consent is not required if the parent, guardian, legal, or actual custodian does not consent to initial evaluation or to re-evaluation of the child for receipt of special education services or programs. Iowa Code sections 299.4, 299A .9;281-IAC rules 31.5(f),31.10.
Independent Private Instruction (IPI) means instruction that meets the following criteria: Parents using the new Independent Private Instruction (IPI) option are not required to file a Form A.
- Is not accredited
- Enrolls not more than four unrelated students
- Does not charge tuition, fees, or other remuneration for instruction
- Provides private or religious-based instruction as its primary purpose
- Provides enrolled students with instruction in mathematics, reading and language arts, science, and social studies
- Provides, upon written request from the superintendent of the school district in which the independent private instruction is provided, or from the director of the department of education, a report identifying the primary instructor, location, name of the authority responsible for the independent private instruction, and the name of the students enrolled.
- Is not a nonpublic school and does not provide competent private instruction as defined in Iowa Code section 299A.1 and these rules.
- Is exempt from all state statutes and administrative rules applicable to a school, a school board, or a school district, except as otherwise provided in Iowa Code chapters 299 and 299A.
- Form A
- Instructions for Form A
- FERPA Parent, Guardian, or Legal or Actual Custodian Notification Form
- Acceptable Tests for Baseline Annual Assessment Requirements
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Private Instruction Comparison Chart
- Timelines and Procedures
- Private Instruction Comparison Chart
- Iowa Administrative Code
- Department of Education Private Instruction