Disability Resources
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Emotional Disturbance
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Emotional disturbance means a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects a student’s educational performance:
- An inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors;
- An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers;
- Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances;
- A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression; and,
- A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or social problems.
The term includes schizophrenia, but does not apply to students who are socially maladjusted unless it is determined they have an emotional disturbance.
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Read about the specific criteria used to determine eligibility in the educational category of emotional disturbance.
Missouri Department of Elementary & Secondary Education – Criteria for Eligibility in the Educational Category of Emotional Disturbance
A student displays an emotional disturbance when:
- Through evaluation procedures that must include observation of behavior in different environments and an in-depth social history, the student displays one of the following characteristics:
A) An inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors;
B) An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers;
C) Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances;
D) A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression; and,
E) A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or social problems.
- The characteristic(s) must have existed to a marked degree and over an extended period of time. In most cases, an extended period of time would be a range from two through nine months depending upon the age of the student and the type of behavior occurring. For example, a shorter duration of disturbance that interrupts the learning process in a younger student might constitute an extended period of time. Difficulties may have occurred prior to the referral for evaluation; and,
- The emotional disturbance adversely affects the student’s educational performance.
NOTE: Manifestations of an emotional disturbance can be observed along a continuum ranging from normal behavior to severely disordered behavior. Students who experience and demonstrate problems of everyday living and/or those who develop transient symptoms due to a specific crisis or stressful experience are not considered to have an emotional disturbance.
- Through evaluation procedures that must include observation of behavior in different environments and an in-depth social history, the student displays one of the following characteristics:
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Other local, state and national resources related to emotional disturbance
Local Resources
- BJC Behavioral Health
- Bridges Community Support Services
- CHADS Coalition
- Missouri Department of Mental Health
- Edgewood Children's Center
- Epworth
- Hawthorn Children’s Psychiatric Hospital
- Mental Health America of Eastern Missouri
- Hopewell Center
- Marygrove
- National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) of St. Louis
- Provident Counseling
State Resources
National Resources
- Boys Town
- Council for Children with Behavioral Disorders
- Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance
- Mental Health America
- National Alliance on Mental Illness
- Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health
- National Institute of Mental Health
- Obsessive-Compulsive Foundation
- Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
