Lake Forest reports rising special-education enrollment, expands in-district programs as outside tuition climbs

The Lake Forest Board of Education on Feb. 13 heard a detailed specialty-education briefing showing a steady rise in students with individualized education programs, the expansion of in-district therapeutic classroom seats and mounting tuition pressures for placements outside the district.

Michelle Ullman, presenting the district's special programs report, said the district's special-education population is roughly one-fifth of total enrollment and that staff and program capacity have increased to match demand. "This year, we have 749 special-education students, resulting in about 20 percent of our population," Ullman said. She later cited slightly different slide figures (739) for identified students, which she said reflected how counts can change during enrollment and reconciliation.

The report outlined staffing growth in related services: speech-language staff rose from six to seven, occupational therapists increased from zero to two (with a third OT just starting), and behavioral-health specialists grew from one to four. Ullman described expanded in-district programming intended to reduce reliance on costly outside placements, including two HighRoads classrooms (an elementary K–4 classroom with nine seats, five students enrolled; a 5–8 middle classroom with nine seats, two students enrolled) and a middle/high arrangement for older students. She said the district also buys seats at…