Grafton committee hears detailed overview of special-education placements and programs

At the Oct. 7 Grafton School Committee meeting, Nicole McDonald, the district’s special-education presenter, gave a step-by-step explanation of how placement determinations are made for students with disabilities and outlined the district’s in‑district and out‑of‑district program options. McDonald said the district follows the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education special‑education regulations’ standard for least restrictive environment and quoted the regulation: "to the maximum extent appropriate, students with disabilities are educated with students who are not disabled." She added that students should be removed from general education only "when the nature or severity of the student's disability is such that it requires more than supplementary aids and services." The presentation separated placements by age group and by percentage of time spent outside general education. For students ages 3–5 the district uses service‑provider locations (appointment-based speech and language, for example), inclusive early‑childhood programs and, in rare cases, substantially separate programs;…