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State Board hears parents, attorneys and consultants: Bridgeport special-education staffing and implementation under review
Summary
Parents, attorneys and a consulting team told the Connecticut State Board of Education on Jan. 8 that Bridgeport Public Schools has ongoing failures to implement many students’ Individualized Education Programs because of persistent staffing shortages and uneven implementation of interventions.
Parents, attorneys and a consultant team told the Connecticut State Board of Education on Jan. 8 that Bridgeport Public Schools is failing to deliver legally required special-education services in a staffing crisis that parents say is harming students.
"There are ongoing violations of the legal rights of students with disabilities within the Bridgeport School District," Katherine Sheibert Meyer, an attorney with the Centers for Children's Advocacy, told the board during public testimony. She said the group's Bridgeport office has filed complaints and asked the board to stay involved while the district responds to a December 13 demand letter.
The board then heard an update on a formal review of Bridgeport special education work led by an outside firm. Nate Levinson, president of the consulting team engaged to conduct the review, said his firm had completed initial interviews, classroom visits and document collection and was preparing preliminary findings and next steps. Levinson described…
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