Groveport Madison board approves contract to host New Story autism program in district facility

The Groveport Madison Local Board of Education voted to approve a contract to host New Story’s autism program in a district facility, a move district staff said will allow some outplaced students to return closer to home and reduce transportation costs.

“Bringing these kids in house … is best for our kids,” said Adam, the district treasurer, explaining the district’s financial comparison. “This contract you’re gonna sign now … is only 58,000,” he said, referring to the annual per‑student cost in the new agreement compared with higher current out‑of‑district rates.

Administrators described the plan as an effort to serve students already placed outside the district and to create capacity for up to 36 seats at the designated facility. Staff said the building to be used is currently available and described its size as “over 4,500” (as stated in the meeting). Board members and staff said the program would serve a narrowly defined subset of students with the highest needs; classroom limits would apply (the speaker said a maximum of six students with autism per classroom for this program).

Board members and staff said New Story operates programs in multiple states and that locating a program inside the district could shorten long special‑transport rides and produce savings. The treasurer contrasted current outplacement costs — described during the meeting as up to $89,000 per student in some contracts — with the proposed $58,000 per student cost under the New Story agreement and added that transporting currently placed students can cost tens of thousands of dollars per student annually. Staff said the program could also accept students from neighboring districts if seats remain unfilled, but that district students would take priority.

Board members asked about staffing, supervision, performance measurement and contract oversight. Staff said New Story would hire and supervise the program staff and that the district would treat New Story as it does other external providers: monitor progress through standard special‑education reporting and bring students back if a provider’s performance proved unsatisfactory. The board discussed concerns commonly raised about specialized providers, including turnover and oversight; staff said those are the same issues districts face broadly in special education and that performance monitoring would follow district practice (progress reports every nine weeks, individualized education program oversight, and related measures).

Some board members urged more time to review details, community input and facility‑planning policies. Others pointed to prior board presentations and grant planning that included the facility as part of an innovation and special‑education strategy; one board member noted related materials and schematics were available in the board’s meeting documents from a September meeting.

On roll call, the board approved the contract: Mrs. Gray, Mr. Bauer, Mrs. Doudelberger and Mr. Kirschner voted yes; Mrs. Walsh voted no.

Staff said implementation would begin promptly to prepare for the next school year and that the district would use identified savings to offset costs and potentially expand services over time.