Date of Award
8-2026
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education (EdD)
Department
Education Systems Improvement Science
Committee Chair/Advisor
Dr. Brandi Hinnant-Crawford
Committee Member
Dr. Pamela Stecker
Committee Member
Dr. Ginny Gast
Committee Member
Dr. Philip Grant Jr.
Abstract
The steady rise in special education identification rates continues to outpace overall U.S. public school enrollment trends, raising important questions about how students are identified, labeled, and referred for services. Despite South Carolina's MTSS mandate under Act 213, implementation remains inconsistent across schools. As a result, referral decisions may be based on limited evidence of student response to targeted general education supports.
The purpose of this Dissertation in Practice was to examine how a school-based improvement initiative, Project FOCUS (Fidelity, Outcomes, Collaboration, and Unified Support), strengthened MTSS pre-referral practices to support special education referral decision-making. Guided by Improvement Science, the study utilized a Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycle to strengthen intervention implementation, progress monitoring, and collaboration. Data sources included intervention fidelity checklists, teacher perception surveys, progress-monitoring data, referral records, and implementation observations.
Findings indicated that Project FOCUS was implemented with high fidelity and viewed positively by participating educators. Results also suggested greater use of intervention and progress-monitoring data when making instructional and referral-related decisions. Additionally, findings highlighted the interconnected nature of MTSS infrastructure, intervention practices, and educator capacity, suggesting that meaningful improvement emerged through the interaction of multiple system components rather than any single intervention strategy.
These findings contribute to MTSS and improvement science literature by illustrating how structured pre-referral practices support more consistent and collaborative approaches to student support.
Recommended Citation
White, Capricia K., "From Referral to Results: Strengthening MTSS Pre-Referral Practices to Improve Special Education Referral Decision-Making" (2026). All Dissertations. 4369.
https://open.clemson.edu/all_dissertations/4369
Included in
Disability and Equity in Education Commons, Educational Administration and Supervision Commons, Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons, Educational Leadership Commons, Special Education and Teaching Commons