2019-Annual Town Report - Laserfiche WebLink

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Report of the Special Education Department The goal of the Special Education Department is to identify eligible students and provide them with specialized instruction and accommodations to help them fulfill their potential towards college and/or career readiness. As part of this mission, the Special Education Departments in each of the buildings, collaborates with Mashpee Public Schools' families to support and educate students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment where students can make effective progress. The Director of Special Education supports and mentors teachers and therapists who work with students with disabilities; helps ensure equitable access to the curriculum while focusing on individualized student needs; applies for grants and reimbursement funding through the state and federal government; and monitors compliance with state timelines and targeted goals through mandatory data collection reports. The Director of Special Education also monitors the placements for out -of -district students. This includes chairing meetings, writing and monitoring Individualized Education Plans (IEPs), and conducting site visits at the various day and residential schools located throughout the state of Massachusetts. In order to be eligible for special education, students between the ages of 3 and 22 must have a documented disability which affects their ability to make effective progress in the general education curriculum. Special education students must require specialized instruction and/or related services to make progress. These services are detailed in each student's Individual Education Plan which is reviewed annually. In addition, all students on IEPs must be re-evaluated every three years to determine continued eligibility. During school year 2018 - 2019, approximately 124 students were evaluated. This number includes initial evaluations as well as reevaluations in preschool through grade 12. The Mashpee Public Schools provided special education services to an average of 266 students during the academic year 2018-2019, which comprises 16.5% of the student population (below the state average of 18.1 %). This is commensurate with last year (259 students) and a reduction from previous academic years (300 students required special education services in 2016 - 2017, and 336 students in the 2015-2016 school year). This stabilization is the result of improvements in how we identify students with disabilities and implementation of a multi -tiered system of support which has resulted in improved outcomes for all students. Students are included with their peers in the general education classroom to the greatest extent possible where they can make effective progress. Our goal is to serve our students with disabilities in an inclusive setting with appropriate accommodations and support as needed to enable effective progress. Full inclusion is when a student is included for at least 80% of their day. Partial inclusion is when a student is included for 40-79% of their school day. Eighty-nine percent of our students were serviced in these two settings (71.4% full inclusion, 17.4% partial inclusion). Approximately 4.6% are in substantially separate programs, and 6.6% are in out -of -district placements. Mashpee Public Schools provide special education services to students through a continuum of services. These services range from consultation with teachers; speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy or counseling; inclusion services and specialized instruction in a small group or pull-out model. We also have substantially separate programs where students are taught by a special education teacher more than 80% of their day. These specialized programs support students with autism, intensive needs, and social/emotional/behavioral issues through a flexible service delivery model. During the summer of 2018, the Mashpee Public Schools offered extended school year (ESY) services to qualifying students. ESY is designed to provide support to students in order to prevent substantial regression of skills over the summer break. Services are varied according to the students' needs with most students attending three days per week in either a four or five -week program. The Mashpee Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAL) gives parents of special education students the opportunity to attend workshops and quarterly meetings with the Director of Special Education. Dr. Jaime Curley, Director of Special Education