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Adler Residential Services presents Baywood School plan to serve students with disabilities; no board decision
Summary
Adler Residential Services outlined a plan to renovate Baywood School as a private day school and later add residential group homes for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities; presenters said the service would fill a regional gap in Region 7 and could create local jobs and retain CSA dollars in the community.
Adler Residential Services (ARS) presented the Board of Supervisors with a proposal to renovate Baywood School as a private day school for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities and, eventually, to add residential group homes on the property. The board received a briefing; no formal action or vote was taken.
Emily Boyles, ARS human-resources director, described a phased plan: open a private day school to serve local students whose Individualized Education Program (IEP) teams require a private placement, then develop surrounding land for group homes and seek a residential license. Boyles said Region 7 — the state education region that includes Grayson County — currently lacks a residential private school for students with disabilities. “If this option is located within the Twin Counties, it would not only reduce these barriers,” Boyles said, reading comments from local special-education directors.
ARS said local school divisions had indicated need: Grayson County Schools officials told presenters there are students who may require private day placement and could face long wait lists elsewhere. ARS said a local option could reduce long commutes, allow families to collaborate more easily with staff and keep related Children's Services Act (CSA) funding in the region.
Presenters described expected services and staff needs — special-education teachers, therapists (occupational, physical and speech), paraprofessionals and maintenance/nutrition staff — and said staffing and student numbers would depend on IEP placements and referrals. ARS also described workforce and economic effects: each residential group home would require multiple direct-support and management staff, they said, creating local jobs tied to placements funded through CSA.
Board members asked about community access to facilities and about how ARS would work with local school divisions; presenters said the cafeteria and kitchen could be available for community events after renovation and that ARS intends to coordinate with school districts. No application, funding request or land-transfer proposal was before the board; the presentation was informational.
