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State board accepts special-education work group report, sets priorities for implementation
Summary
After nearly two years of meetings and public sessions, the Maryland State Board of Education unanimously accepted a final report and prioritized implementation plan from the Special Education Work Group on June 25, endorsing recommendations to increase access, clarify expectations, and launch targeted technical assistance.
The Maryland State Board of Education on June 25 accepted the final report and recommendations of the Special Education Work Group, a multi-stakeholder effort that convened 58 members over roughly 18 months to review data, policy and practice for students with disabilities.
Assistant State Superintendent Dr. Antoine Hickman and co-chair Liz Zogby presented the report and a prioritization plan that the work group assembled after developing roughly 27 formal recommendations and many sub-recommendations. The report and accompanying plan focus on raising expectations, expanding access to general education, strengthening educator capacity and changing staffing and scheduling models to support inclusion.
During the presentation Hickman summarized statewide performance data that motivated the group's urgency: roughly 106,000 students with disabilities in Maryland (about 13 percent of enrollment), MCAP proficiency gaps (example cited: 53 percent proficiency for students without disabilities vs. 13 percent for students with disabilities in ELA), and a four-year graduation rate gap (88 percent overall vs. 69 percent for students with disabilities). He stressed that gaps were persistent and that inclusion rates place Maryland among states with relatively high rates of restrictive placements.
Work-group recommendations and priorities: The report groups recommendations by topic: expectations and standards for IEPs and access to grade-level curriculum; teacher preparation and professional learning; staffing plans and service delivery; funding and fiscal study; disproportionate identification and discipline; early childhood; transition to postsecondary and career; students with the most significant cognitive disabilities; and behavior supports. The group recommended a near-term prioritized action plan with tasks MSDE will coordinate with districts.
MSDE staff said MSDE has already initiated several follow-up steps: launching a fiscal study RFP on special-education adequacy and initiating targeted support for districts identified for significant disproportionality. Hickman said the group emphasized that many priorities could be addressed through reorganization, clarified expectations and scalable technical assistance in the near term, not only new dollars.
Board action and next steps: The State Board unanimously voted to accept the report and the prioritized plan; co-chair Zogby said MSDE will use a tracking system that assigns responsibilities, timelines and reporting roles for each recommendation. The agenda item included an explicit plan for professional learning, a director-level academy and an emerging leader program for special education administrators.
Stakeholder reaction and additional context: Co-chair Zogby and multiple board members emphasized the need to highlight successful district practices to model change and to continue robust technical assistance. Several board members and the presenters noted the report is not a single fix; rather it is a multi-year implementation effort. Board members asked MSDE to prepare clear guidance and to prioritize supports that districts can implement quickly.
(Reporting note: coverage summarises the work-group presentation and board action recorded in the public transcript.)
