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Special-education report: Princeton meets compliance threshold but flags disproportionality in emotional-disturbance IDs
Summary
District staff reported Princeton met the federal/state compliance threshold for special education but slipped to an overall rating of about 3.75; the presentation highlighted a 4.42 risk ratio for identification of emotional disturbance among African American students, a drop in the ED caseload from 45 to 35, and a required redirection of 15% of IDEA funds to address the disproportionality.
Dr. Fosnow presented Princeton City Schools' special-education profile for the 2024-25 school year and told the board the district continues to meet the state's compliance threshold while noting areas for improvement.
"We were meeting requirements again for the 24-25 school year," Dr. Fosnow said, but she added the district slipped slightly to an overall rating of 3.75, down from 4.00 the previous year. She identified disproportionality for the emotional-disturbance (ED) eligibility category among African American students, citing a risk ratio of 4.42. That indicates African American students were a little more than four times as likely to be identified in the ED category as other subgroups.
Staff reported the district's ED enrollment declined from 45 students in 2023-24 to 35 students last year; Dr. Fosnow said 13 of those 35 students were identified with ED in other districts before enrolling in Princeton. Because the district was identified as disproportionate in this category, staff said the district must redirect 15% of federal IDEA funds toward reducing that disproportionality through culturally responsive practices, data analysis, professional development and behavioral supports.
Dr. Fosnow emphasized the district has a network of school-based mental-health partners (she named providers including Talbert House, NIAP and the school-based health center) and reported 281 Princeton students in grades K-12 were receiving services from a school-based mental-health provider. Dr. Fosnow said the district will continue monitoring identification, ensure timely evaluations, and provide supports such as intervention periods, freshman seminars and multi-tiered systems of support to address behavior and transitions.
Board members asked for a breakdown of the 281 students by eligibility category and by school, how many of the 281 are ED, and which buildings host specialized classrooms; they also asked whether the district automatically reevaluates IEPs adopted from other districts. Dr. Fosnow said staff would provide a detailed breakdown and explained the district performs a records review and reevaluation where appropriate rather than automatically reevaluating every incoming IEP.
