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Sharon district outlines special‑education staffing shortfalls, compensatory services and monitoring
Summary
Jessica Murphy, Sharon Public Schools director of student services, told the school committee the district has about 669 students eligible for IEPs (roughly 18.5% of enrollment), described recent staffing shortages and use of compensatory services, and said DESE on‑site verification will occur in April 2025. Committee members asked for program performance and compensatory‑service data to guide budget decisions.
Jessica Murphy, the district’s director of student services, presented a detailed account of Sharon Public Schools’ special‑education programs and staffing to the school committee on Dec. 8.
Murphy said the district “currently had 669 students with IEPs” — about “18.5% of our student population” — and described a wide continuum of supports from inclusion and co‑teaching through specialized programs such as SOAR, LEAP, DLP, RISE and Pathways. She introduced the special‑education leadership team and said many program descriptions, including entrance and exit criteria, are posted on the district’s student‑services web page.
Murphy framed staffing as the central challenge. She described a national shortage of special‑education personnel, outlined the district’s recruitment steps (district website, SchoolSpring/School Sprout, Indeed, LinkedIn, professional outreach and staffing agencies) and listed current openings: a 0.8 speech‑language pathologist, an early‑childhood IA, a Cottage Street IA and an anticipated DLP long‑term substitute after spring. Where long‑term subs were unavailable, Murphy said the district notified families and provided compensatory services to make up missed minutes when appropriate.
Parents during public comment voiced concerns that echoed the presentation: gaps in services during long‑term leaves, inconsistent supports across classrooms and the financial burden of private tutoring to cover missed school services. CPAC President Andrea Pinon urged parents to participate in CPAC events (January coffees, Jan. 28 504 training, Feb. 24 basic‑rights session) and to use the parent advisory council as a resource.
Committee members pressed for additional, aggregated performance and service‑delivery data. Jeremy asked about trends in out‑of‑district placements; Murphy said those placements are under 10% of the special‑education population (about 8%) and that the share rose modestly after she arrived but has been relatively static in recent years. Alan and others asked whether the district can report how much of intended special‑education services were delivered year‑over‑year and how many compensatory minutes were provided; Murphy said compensatory services increased in the last two years and that she will work with administration to provide the requested aggregated metrics for budget planning.
Murphy also told the committee that the district is in a DESE tiered focused‑monitoring year and expects on‑site verification in the first week of April 2025; DESE will review records, select samples, conduct interviews and provide self‑assessment requirements. She urged parents to complete the parent survey that will accompany that on‑site review.
Next steps: committee members asked the administration to translate programmatic needs into prioritized budget requests and cost estimates (including potential add‑backs and one‑time funds) so the committee and town can weigh tradeoffs during the February priorities meeting.
