Bethlehem CSD placed in state 'needs assistance' for special education; district outlines training and staffing plan

The Bethlehem Central School District received a state designation of "needs assistance, year 1" under the New York State Education Department's new special education accountability system, Director of Special Education Doug Morrissey told the Board of Education on June 18.

Morrissey said the district earned 13 of 22 possible points on student-performance measures and all 17 possible compliance points for a combined score of 30 out of 39 (76.92 percent), which placed the district in the needs-assistance category. He identified especially low proficiency rates for students with disabilities on the fourth- and eighth-grade state assessments and noted that, for one measure, "it is literally 0 students" in eighth-grade math who showed proficiency last year.

The state system evaluates student performance (22 points), district compliance with state regulations (up to 23 points), and the number of years a district has been identified. Morrissey said the district will not appeal the designation and instead will use the first year to choose interventions and professional development that fit local needs.

Why it matters: The designation signals statewide attention and triggers required supports from the state over time if local remediation does not improve outcomes. Morrissey framed the rating as both a short-term problem and an opportunity: "I was happy to start with some celebratory comments because, frankly, the rest of my comments, they're disappointing. Right? And I'll say that upfront," he told the board.

Details and district response Morrissey walked the board through the accountability matrix. For student performance, Bethlehem received a single point for the graduation-rate measure (64.29 percent for students with disabilities, based on the 2022–23 cohort), and a mix of one-point results on most proficiency measures. He reported that fourth-grade ELA proficiency for students with disabilities was just over 9 percent, fourth-grade math about 18 percent, eighth-grade ELA about 11.5 percent, and eighth-grade math 0 percent. He also reported that about 6 percent of students with disabilities attended separate out-of-district programs and that just 15 percent of preschool-aged students with disabilities received the majority of services in general-education preschool settings.

Morrissey described a multi-part district plan to address the rating: prioritize local professional development, enroll district leaders and teacher-leaders in an October two-day state workshop, consult neighboring higher-performing districts to observe practices, and pursue state-provided improvement programs once the state publishes its menu of supports. He also said the district will pursue a reading teacher position that appears on the night's personnel agenda and that a portion of that teacher's time would be focused on students with disabilities.

Board and staff discussion Board members and staff asked for clarifications about data sources, cohort sizes and how the state scores are calculated. Morrissey noted the two-year exception the state used for the graduation and dropout components and emphasized the distinction between performance on 3–8 assessments and high-school outcomes: he said students with disabilities may show low proficiency on middle-grade state tests but still have comparatively strong Regents exam or graduation results.

Staff described program-level changes already planned for 2025–26: phasing out some "Excel" math sections at the middle school to expose more students to grade-level curriculum; consolidating or realigning foundation programs in elementary special education; adding targeted reading support and ensuring MTSS (multi-tiered systems of support) includes students with disabilities. Morrissey and other administrators said they will monitor impacts and bring updates back to the board.

Public comment and parents' concerns During public comment, parent Lisa McAndrew, who identified herself as the parent of a child in the district foundations program, urged the board to add a third classroom at Hammer Grama for next year so that a currently oversized and dysregulated special-education classroom can be reduced before another cohort advances. "My daughter Evie will soon be 10 years old, and she can't read," McAndrew said, and urged immediate action to change next year's classroom configuration rather than waiting for longer-term program changes.

Next steps and oversight Morrissey said the district did not file an appeal of the state determination and will use the first year of the designation to select and implement local interventions. He told the board he expects more public data from the state before June 30 and said the district will seek and deploy state-run professional-development options as they become available. Board members requested an update on implementation and professional development later in the year; staff agreed to return with a progress report and to flag any requests for additional staffing or resources.

"We have a story of underperformance, but we have an opportunity for improvement," Morrissey said. "They deserve better than this, and we need to get it for them."