Southeast Polk presents special education service delivery plan required by Iowa Department of Education
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Summary
District staff presented a new special education service delivery plan that outlines service models, caseload determination and procedures to resolve caseload concerns; staff said the plan responds to rising enrollment and increased IEP child counts.
Leah Morris, presenting for the district, outlined a special education service delivery plan required by the Iowa Department of Education and summarized the committee process used to write it.
Morris said a 21-member committee met five times from January through May to address four core questions: how services will be provided to eligible students, how teacher caseloads will be determined, how caseload concerns will be resolved and how the district will evaluate plan effectiveness. "We started with data: enrollment rose from 6,836 in 2020 to about 7,500 in 2024 and the number of students with IEPs rose from 837 to 1,040," Morris said, noting a 10% increase in certified enrollment and a 24% increase in the special-education child count over the same period.
The plan, Morris said, includes a continuum of service-delivery models for preschool, elementary, secondary and the 4-plus program; adopts the Iowa Department of Education's weighted matrix to determine caseloads; establishes a collaborative process for resolving caseload concerns; and sets methods for evaluating effectiveness using progress-monitoring and academic data.
Board members asked how the district ensures general education teachers receive students' accommodation information. Morris said the plan and preservice scheduling include specific time for special education staff to meet with general educators to share accommodations while preserving privacy required by law.
On participation and evaluation, Morris said the district aims to maintain high parent involvement—staff estimate more than 90% participation at IEP meetings through flexible scheduling and remote options—and will monitor progress-monitoring and proficiency gaps between general-education and special-education students.
The board complimented the committee's composition and the plan’s data-driven approach. Morris told trustees the plan will be shared with principals and used during the principal leadership retreat to ensure implementation across buildings.
The district presented outcome metrics and examples of proficiency rates for students with IEPs: four-year ELA proficiency averaged about 24% and math about 32%, figures Morris said were within the range of comparable districts.
