Director of Special Education Mariah Pritchard told the Bellbrook-Sugarcreek Board of Education on Oct. 23 that the district is recommending adoption of OhioDepartment of Education model special-education policies and procedures as written.

Pritchard said the model policies align the district with the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and the Ohio operating standards and must be submitted through the statemanaged VAER monitoring system. "Ohio law mandates that every educational agency must have written policies and procedures for the education of students with disabilities," Pritchard said. "These policies must align with both federal law and the Ohio operating standards."

Pritchard outlined two options the district can choose: adopt the state model policies verbatim or develop district-specific policies that still meet federal and state requirements. She said the districts special-education team reviewed the 2024 model policies and, as of the board meeting, recommended adopting them as written because no local changes were necessary following the March 2025 update from the Office for Exceptional Children.

The director said her team will continue a section-by-section review to ensure staff implementation clarity and compliance; she will upload the board's approved policies to the state system if the board votes to adopt them. The presentation emphasized transparency and the annual verification step required by the Ohio Department of Education and the Office for Exceptional Children.

Board members asked clarifying questions and acknowledged the recommendation. Superintendent and board staff described the presentation as a first read; the board did not take a formal adoption vote at the Oct. 23 meeting and will consider final action at a future meeting.

Ending: The board will return the model policies for further review and is expected to vote on formal adoption at a later meeting; Pritchard said staff will continue to work section-by-section to confirm implementation steps and upload any approved documents to the state's VAER monitoring system.