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Uxbridge reports 69% jump in ESY attendance and growing special-education caseload; district may need four additional staff
Summary
Special-education director reported higher enrollments, a substantial increase in ESY participation and 22 out-of-district placements for which the district is fiscally responsible; staffing analyses could require hiring up to four unbudgeted positions to meet service needs.
Miss Toth, presenting the district’s special-education update, told the committee the district began the 2025–26 school year with about 317 students receiving special-education services and 22 students in out-of-district placements for which the district is currently fiscally responsible.
"We had a 69% increase in ESY attendance in 1 year," Miss Toth said, highlighting that the extended-school-year change was the most substantial fluctuation since 2019. She described several drivers of enrollment change, including children turning 3, new eligibility findings over the summer, move‑ins and school choice lottery outcomes.
Miss Toth outlined program-level counts: integrated preschool with 28 students on IEPs and three open seats; therapeutic-learning-center classrooms exceeding initial expectations (one opened this year and has seven students); small specialized classrooms where staffing models limit capacity. She warned these enrollment shifts may require additional staff: "it may still result in a need to hire up to 4 additional staff that we have not budgeted for."
The presentation addressed specialized transportation (three district mini-buses contracted through Vendetti with monitors), noting ridership ties to IEP/504 service delivery and frequent fluctuations. Miss Toth said the district will include out-of-district placements and projected special-education increments in next year’s budget forecast.
What committee members asked and what happened next: members pressed for clarity on school-choice funding, per-pupil costs and the formula for special-increment claims; Mr. Youngberg and Miss Toth agreed to provide additional analysis during budget development. The committee requested a future presentation focused on therapeutic-learning-center operations and staffing projections.
The update concluded with an acknowledgement that programmatic needs (reading supports, speech and OT/PT) will affect both budgeting and hiring decisions over the coming year.
