Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Special Education topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Hyde Park district outlines special-education redesign, will discontinue Violet Avenue 8:1:2 SEL classes and expand co-teaching
Summary
Director of Special Education Joanna Murphy told the Board the district will discontinue two 8:1:2 social-emotional-learning special‑class sections at Violet Avenue because of low projected enrollment, add a 12:1:1 special class, expand integrated co‑teaching across elementary schools and add supports to reduce pull‑outs from core instruction.
Joanna Murphy, director of special education for the Hyde Park Central School District, presented the department's annual update and a program redesign that officials said is intended to move more students into inclusive settings while preserving intensive options for those who need them.
Murphy told the board the district currently serves about 635 students with disabilities (263 elementary, 142 middle, 168 high school) and about 62 students in specialized, out‑of‑district placements. She said the district's classification rate is approximately 19.2%, above New York State's 17.8% and the national average of about 15%.
Murphy said the district will discontinue the 8:1:2 special class focused on social and emotional learning at Violet Avenue because projected enrollment is low and no new students are anticipated for that program. To address incoming kindergarten needs the district will add a 12:1:1 special class elsewhere and redesign grade‑level placements so that both buildings will have resource rooms, integrated co‑teaching (ICT) in all grades and three 12:1:1 classes split as K‑1, 2‑3 and 4‑5. The K‑1 classes will be staffed as 12:1:2 (a teacher plus an additional teaching assistant) to provide extra support for younger students learning school routines.
Murphy emphasized that students who require a more restrictive program will still be served: "If they needed that program, we would serve them in a building that has that program," she said, summarizing the district approach to placement and noting staffing will be reassigned rather than eliminated.
District staff explained the difference between models: direct consultant teaching (DCT) pushes a special education teacher into general‑education classrooms for scattered students, while ICT is structured for larger numbers of students with disabilities and involves shared planning and co‑delivery by both teachers.
Officials said another aim is to reduce the amount of core instructional time students miss for related services (speech, OT, PT, counseling). The department is experimenting with push‑in services and co‑treatment so students receive supports in class instead of being pulled out.
The presentation described secondary programs and transition work: the district offers alternative assessment classes and vocational options including a Practical Assessment Exploration (PACE) lab and partnerships with BOCES. Murphy and colleagues highlighted the Career Development and Occupational Studies (CDOS) credential as a pathway that can help some students earn a diploma when Regents exams are a barrier.
Murphy said the district is working with the state Special Education Quality Assurance team (CEQA review) and the regional partnership center to strengthen least‑restrictive environment practices, and that a CEQA reviewer has been observing Committee on Special Education (CSE) meetings and offering recommendations.
Board members asked about declassification and transition planning. Murphy said declassification recommendations come from the CSE and staff attempt consensus with families. She noted the IEP expires at the end of grade 12 and that colleges typically use post‑secondary documentation and testing/psychological reports (not K‑12 IEPs) when students request accommodations. The district can, at the time of declassification, recommend up to one year of declassified support services as a fade‑out.
Public comment included a resident who raised specific complaints about services for her children; district leaders responded that individual student matters are handled privately through due‑process channels.
District leaders said the redesign aims to broaden ICT and resource room access across elementary buildings while reserving specialized classrooms where student counts and needs justify them. The department asked the board to view the changes as program design decisions made from projected enrollment, staffing and facility constraints.
Any requests for specific, individual student records or decisions will be handled through the district's special education processes rather than at public meetings.
