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Director: specialized placements at capacity, graduation gap for students with disabilities
Summary
District special-programs director told the board specialized programs are full, roughly 15% of students are served in special education, graduation outcomes lag (about 60% for students with IEPs) and the district is emphasizing inclusion/co‑teaching at middle schools to improve outcomes.
The district’s director of special programs told the board Wednesday that specialized special‑education placements are near capacity and that the district is seeing a gap in graduation outcomes for students with disabilities.
Christa McGuire, director of special programs, said the district identifies students through its MTSS process and offers three main specialized tracks (foundational skills classrooms, social learning centers and structured support), with Fairmount serving as the intensive, temporary placement. McGuire said about 22% of students in special education require more intensive supports than the typical learning resource center can provide and that the district is seeing more students identified with autism and other health impairments.
McGuire told the board, “We are currently about almost 15%” for the district special‑education child count relative to total enrollment and added that “our graduation rate for students in special education is about 60 percent,” noting a consequential dropout rate as well.
Board members and building leaders discussed classroom inclusion strategies. North Albany Middle School’s presentation earlier in the meeting described a co‑teaching/inclusion model that pushed special‑education supports into core classes rather than pulling students out. That middle‑school team reported rapid gains for students with IEPs in short timeframes — one presenter said students with IEPs made roughly 140% of projected annual reading growth in four months — and advocated expanding such practices to increase access to general‑education instruction at the secondary level.
Why it matters: McGuire said students who spend less time in general education historically show weaker outcomes on graduation measures, and the district framed inclusion and co‑teaching as strategies to improve long‑term outcomes while managing capacity limits. McGuire also noted the district is planning a kindergarten intake approach to observe incoming students before making placement decisions.
Next steps: the district will continue to monitor incoming ECSE transitions, pursue staffing and placement planning, and report back to the board on capacity and program placement options.
