School Board Considers New Therapy Services Provider

At the Feb. 22 Saucon Valley School Board meeting, Supervisor of Special Education Shawn Rutt presented a proposal to save the district about $28,000 over three years by using another therapy services provider.

According to Rutt, the district provides occupational therapy to 43 students and physical therapy to four students. Using Colonial Intermediate Unit 20 as the sole therapy services provider, the total yearly cost for these services is about $80,000. As an example, Rutt explained that if the district were using the intermediate unit and a company called PTS for the 2010-2011 school year, the cost would drop to about $72, 500.

Rutt projected the savings over a three-year period using the 2011-2012, 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 school years to be about $28,000.

The district cannot use PTS as their sole therapy services provider due to contractual obligations with the intermediate unit. Otherwise the savings might be slightly higher.

The reason PTS costs less than the intermediate unit is because PTS only bills the school for the time the therapist spends with the students, whereas the intermediate unit bills for travel time, supplies and other items.

Board members questioned Rutt on the quality of service students would receive under PTS.

Rutt responded by explaining that PTS is a company that has been providing therapy services solely to school districts for many years.

Another point of concern for board members was the fact that the therapy PTS would provide would only be done in groups, rather than on a one-on-one basis.

Rutt said that many students do better in group sessions than in individual sessions, but added that that’s not true for every student.

Board members asked Rutt to obtain quotes for three other therapy services providers and to present his findings at a future board meeting.

In other business, Athletic Director Robert Frey presented the board with a proposal for a district athletics hall of fame. He said currently, the district has a wall of fame, but it only honors athletes from 1990 and later.

Frey explained that anyone—including the public—could nominate an athlete to the hall of fame. After nominations are received, a nine-member committee would review the nominees and pick seven athletes for inclusion in the hall of fame for the next three years and five athletes per year thereafter.

Nominations would be taken until Oct. 30 each year and a ceremony for inductees would be held in May or June, Frey said.