District posts draft special‑education comprehensive plan for public review; committee schedules follow‑up

The East Stroudsburg Area School District advisory committee heard a presentation on the district's draft Special Education Comprehensive Plan and voted to post the draft for the required public review period before sending it to the full board for approval.

A special‑education staff presenter described the plan as a draft and said staff intended to open it for public comment and to solicit feedback before bringing a final version to the board. The presentation said the plan is developed every three years, is informed by a state cyclical monitoring audit, and covers 13 monitoring areas. Staff told the committee they planned to post the draft for public input in early March and aim to submit the final plan to the Pennsylvania Department of Education by May 1.

Committee discussion focused on three monitoring areas identified as needing improvement: (1) suspensions and expulsions (including disparities by race/ethnicity), (2) timely evaluations, and (3) least restrictive environment (LRE). Presenters described steps already under way: an in‑school reflection/replacement instruction model that reduces suspension days counted against students, a full‑time behavior support coach, increased mental‑health staff, additional diagnostician positions to aid evaluations, and co‑teaching pilots at elementary schools to increase inclusion.

Staff provided several operational details: the district currently employs seven mental‑health professionals providing individual and group counseling and eight mental‑health workers supporting emotional‑support classrooms; the district has four behavior analysts (three contracted through the intermediate unit and one district‑hired); there are openings for seven school‑psychologist positions and the district currently has six filled; the special‑education population was reported at about 23% of total enrollment compared with a state average around 15–16%; and the district recently opened three new elementary autistic‑support classrooms and added other supplemental programs.

Board members asked for more time and a concise summary to help committee and board review. Staff agreed to post the draft with an online comment link for the public and to circulate a one‑page synopsis to board members in a routine Friday update. The committee voted to post the plan for the required public review period and recommended board consideration at the April 28 meeting; staff indicated an intent to submit to the state by May 1.