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Belton ISD trustees hear special-education update as district cites multimillion-dollar funding gap
Summary
District administrators told trustees Nov. 18 that special-education enrollment has risen sharply — driven in part by recent state policy changes affecting dyslexia identification — and that expenditures for services now exceed state allotments by several million dollars, prompting a legislative funding priority.
Belton ISD trustees reviewed an update on special education at a Nov. 18 workshop, where district administrators described steady growth in students served, program changes tied to state policy, and a widening gap between expenditures and state funding.
Gabby Nino, introduced at the meeting as the presenter, said the district has seen special-education enrollment grow from about 13.91% of students in 2019 to roughly 19.81% in 2024, and that the district has added more than 1,000 special-education students in the past five years. "We've seen a growth of over 1,000 students in the last five years," Nino said, noting that growth averaged about 200 students per year.
The administrators told trustees two eligibility categories showed the largest increases: autism and specific learning disabilities (SLD). Kitty Forstem, director of special programs, said external factors and policy changes after COVID contributed to higher identification. "Our highest, growing eligibility category…
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