The Little Rock School District board on Tuesday approved a contract with Urban Collaborative to conduct a comprehensive audit of the district’s special education program.

Cassandra Steele, director of special programs, told the board the firm was selected from a competitive process and will review staffing, fiscal alignment, service delivery and records across campuses. “They’re going to be on the ground initially, talking to our teachers, reviewing records and everything that special education touches in the district to give us a very comprehensive audit,” Steele said.

An Urban Collaborative representative said the review will look broadly at referral patterns, inclusion practices, staffing configurations (including use of self-contained classrooms and paraprofessionals), transportation and cost drivers. The consultant noted the district’s special education population—estimated in the meeting at about 18–20% of students—was higher than national averages and flagged that as a focal question to examine. “We will look at why kids are being referred at that rate, the staffing models and transportation and how those drive costs,” the representative said.

Board members asked whether the RFP and audit explicitly cover revenue-side opportunities—particularly Medicaid and other third-party billing. One board member asked if the audit would analyze billing and revenue maximization; the Urban Collaborative representative said the firm would include fiscal alignment in the review and indicated revenue streams would be examined and recommendations co-created with district staff.

District staff and board members said the audit’s findings will inform the 2026–27 budget-reduction plan and help identify where services can be delivered more efficiently without reducing student access to required supports. The board approved the proposal to work with Urban Collaborative by voice vote; no roll-call tally was provided in the public record.

The district expects the audit team to begin work in January, complete site visits and data analysis during the spring and return recommendations to the board after the review.