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Navigating a New Diagnosis of ADHD in Your Child’s West Virginia School Districts: A Few Pointers to Help Guide Parents and Guardians: Advice From a School Psychologist

Supporting Clinicians in Guiding Families Through ADHD: Navigating School Resources in West Virginia

As a clinician in West Virginia, you play an instrumental role in assisting families navigating an ADHD diagnosis. Learning that their child now has this diagnosis and may need additional nonpharmacological and pharmacological supports can often leave families overwhelmed with questions like: “What do I do next?”, “How do I ensure my child gets the support they need to succeed?” Beyond providing medical guidance, you can also help direct families to West Virginia schools’ educational and behavioral support systems.

How can you do that? It may seem like a daunting task—understanding the nuances of school interventions, policies, and the proper steps to recommend. To make this process easier, we reached out to Angela Hayes, Director of Psychological Services and Student Interventions in Monongalia County Schools, who provided the key insights clinicians need to assist families during this often difficult time. This document is designed as a resource you can confidently share with families, ensuring they have the information and direction necessary to advocate for their child’s success.

Navigating a New Diagnosis of ADHD in Your Child’s West Virginia School Districts: A Few Pointers to Help Guide Parents and Guardians: Advice From a School Psychologist

(Angela Hayes, Director of Psychological Services and Student Interventions in Monongalia County Schools) 

You just received the report from the psychologist, psychiatrist, or pediatrician.  Your child’s final diagnosis is ADHD…now what?   

To address the myriad of needs of our students in today’s challenging world, schools must develop a personalized learning environment tailored to students’ needs, skills, and interests. 

There is a structure of support in West Virginia called the West Virginia Tiered System of Support (WVTSS) that is meant to support all students in the areas of behavior, mental health, and academics.  Additionally, this framework aligns specific interventions for students who need assistance that are greater than what is given to all students.  This structure exists at all schools and grade levels.  The first level is called Universal supports, where each and every student receives a foundation for behavioral expectations and essential life skills that are taught and modeled.   

Suppose a student with ADHD struggles with homework organization and forgetfulness (and more than just the occasional forgetfulness that we all experience nowadays!)   They may need the support of a check-in/check-out system where the teacher helps to gather materials at the end of the school day and help turn in assignments the next day.  With this additional support, a student with ADHD is back on an equal playing field with their peers.  This level of support is called Targeted.  

The next level of support is Intensive, and school teams are trained to identify and define a student’s needs, gather and analyze data, develop a plan, and implement and monitor the plan.   A specific school team that is available in every West Virginia School District is called the Student Assistance Team (SAT).    

If there is one thing that you take away from this article, it would be to remember to ask about a SAT meeting at your school when you start to see your child struggle with behavior, academics, or mental health.  The team is designed to include professionals who can assist with building appropriate interventions.  …………Keep in mind that schools are set up much differently than “back in the day” when we were students.  There are many more student services and supports! 

You may also want to inquire about a Section 504 plan, which is under the Americans with Disabilities Act.  Each school system has a protocol for the 504 referral and assessment to determine eligibility.  If eligible, 504 plans can address the specific needs of students with ADHD, such as modifications to the learning environment, accommodations for attention and focus, and assessment accommodations, which can significantly improve academic performance.  

Lastly, parent Involvement and home-school communication is crucial to the success of students with ADHD.  The combination of behavioral strategies at home and school and pharmaceutical interventions can be a balancing act.  Any changes that may occur in a student’s medication regimen can be valuable to the school team.  Teachers and staff can help observe any changes, such as hyperactivity, distractibility, or eating habits and report information that you can share with your physician.   

While ADHD can present challenges in school, with appropriate support and interventions, students with ADHD can experience positive outcomes and achieve academic success.  Research highlights the importance of early identification, tailored interventions, and a supportive school environment to help students thrive.  West Virginia Schools have a framework in place to help students who display behaviors and symptoms associated with ADHD.  

Supporting Families Through the Process

As a healthcare provider, you can help bridge the gap between medical and educational interventions by guiding families toward available resources. Encouraging parents to initiate SAT meetings, inquire about 504 plans, and maintain open communication with teachers can significantly impact a child’s success. Please feel free to share this document with parents as a helpful reference when navigating their child’s school system. By equipping families with this information, clinicians can ensure that children with ADHD receive the academic and behavioral support they need to thrive. For your convenience, you can download a printable version of the original guidance from our expert here.

About the Author

Angela Hayes, the Director of Psychological Services for Monongalia County Schools for the past five years, previously served as a nationally certified school psychologist in the district since 2003. She takes great pride in the professionals and support staff of Monongalia County Schools, who not only demonstrate expertise in their fields but also show genuine care and concern for the learning and development of all students in Monongalia County schools throughout the years. The Psychological Services department plays a vital role within Student Services, and overseeing its growth and advancement has been one of the highlights of her career. Providing and directing high-quality emotional, behavioral, and academic assessment and intervention remains her passion.

General disclaimer:
This content is not intended to address all possible diagnosis methods, treatments, follow up, drugs or their related contraindications or side effects. Standards of practice change as new data becomes available. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that practitioners independently assess and verify diagnosis, treatments and drugs for each individual patient. The authors of the WV ACC guidelines assume no liability for any aspect of treatment administered by a practitioner with the aid of this publication.

Drug disclaimer:
The authors do not endorse or recommend the use of any particular drug mentioned in this publication. Before prescribing a new drug to a patient, practitioners are advised to check the product information accompanying each drug to ensure it is appropriate for a specific patient and to identify appropriate dosage, contraindications, side effects and drug-to-drug interactions.

Standard of care disclaimer:
This publication is not intended to establish a standard of care applicable to practitioners who treated patients diagnosed with ADHD. “Standard of care” is a legal term, not a medical term, which refers to the degree of care a reasonable practitioner would exercise under the same or similar circumstances. The standard of care is a continuum and does not imply optimal care. Practitioner discretion and clinical judgment are paramount and this publication is only intended to aid practitioners’ judgment, not to serve as a substitute for said judgment.