Parents, Students Urge Plymouth School Committee to Let ILC Students Stay With Peers at PCIS

Parents, students and a Federal Furnace Elementary School staff member urged the Plymouth School Committee on April 28 to explore ways to keep students in the district’s Intensive Learning Center (ILC) with their existing peers when they move to middle school, rather than transferring them to a different middle school because of budgeting and staffing constraints.

The request came during the meeting’s public comment period, when Sarah Maloney, a Plymouth resident and mother of four with several children in Plymouth Public Schools, described the impact on her son Luke, who has Down syndrome and limited verbal language. "Inclusion is not a charity," Maloney said. "It is for everyone." She asked the committee to "explore options that will allow all children within this district to be able to move forward in secondary education with their typical peers to their district-appropriated middle school."

Why it matters: Parents and student speakers said keeping ILC students with familiar classmates helps language development, continuity and social-emotional growth. Maloney cited research in general terms that she said shows students with Down syndrome and other intellectual disabilities make better progress in spoken language and reading when taught alongside familiar, typically developing peers. Committee members did not vote on the request during the meeting.

Students who said they are friends with Luke described how daily, informal interactions built his relationships with classmates. "I would be so sad if he couldn't be with his friends," said Nolan, who identified himself as having been friends with Luke since second grade. Jake Maloney, a seventh grader at PCIS and Luke’s brother, told the committee, "I can't imagine what it would be like for Luke to go to a whole different school not knowing a single person there." Sixth-grader Aiden Anderson said, "It's not fair that he has to be farther from his friends' family just because he needs a little extra help." Those student remarks were part of multiple public-comments by peers and family members that emphasized the social connections built at Federal Furnace.

Federal Furnace staff also described school programs that parents said support inclusion. In the public comments and school updates that followed, speakers noted a Unified Sports program and a rotating bus seating arrangement that encourages peer friendships. Federal Furnace principal Stacy Perry later told the committee the school currently houses the ILC in three classrooms serving 18 students.

What parents asked of the committee: In addition to asking the committee to "explore options," Maloney and other parents urged attention to how budgeting and staffing decisions affect where ILC students are placed for middle school. They sought continuity of peer groups and the supports the ILC provides within their home school community. Parents and students framed their request as an appeal for the district to review placement options before making final assignment decisions for next school year.

No formal action recorded: The committee moved on to high-school updates after public comment; there was no vote, motion or formal directive on the matter during the April 28 meeting.

What’s next: The committee did not schedule a follow-up vote during the meeting. Parents requested that the committee explore options and consider the human impact of placement decisions; any staff recommendations or formal actions would appear on a future agenda if the district develops alternatives or a placement plan.