Amherst Central staff report rising special-education caseloads, counseling data and mental-health programs

At a meeting of the Amherst Central School District board, district special‑education and pupil personnel staff reported a marked increase in students identified with disabilities and outlined the district’s counseling plan, crisis‑intervention reporting and several mental‑health and vocational partnerships.

District presenters said 505 school‑age students were classified as students with disabilities in the 2024–25 school year and 96 preschool‑age children were receiving some level of preschool special‑education services as of the April reporting date. Staff said recent years show a net increase in classified students in part because more students with existing individualized education programs have moved into the district: this year staff recorded 65 move‑ins of students with disabilities and 23 move‑outs, a net gain of 42 students.

Those enrolment changes matter because federal and state special‑education monitoring uses multiple data indicators and can prompt oversight. "When you reach a threshold of over $500,000 in revenue, you're required to have [a Medicaid compliance program]. Conveniently, that changed after we created it. So they shifted it to a million dollars," a district staff member said, describing a recent change to the Medicaid reporting threshold. Staff told the board the district maintains a Medicaid compliance program although current Medicaid revenue falls below the new $1 million…