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Committee probes special-education compliance as Methuen requests additional SEAs, program assistants and counselors
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Summary
Committee members pressed the administration on which hires are necessary for IEP compliance and case management; Assistant Superintendent Gina Bozak said new program-assistant positions and administrators will support service delivery and that timeline compliance issues tied to contracted psychologists have largely been addressed.
Member Soares asked the administration to specify which special-education requests are essential for compliance with IEPs and student services. "Could you just tell me under the special education new budget request, which of those requests will keep us in compliance with IEPs and student services?" Soares asked.
Assistant Superintendent Gina Bozak listed the specific program-assistant requests that address service delivery: 1:1 aides, resource-room and pathways supports at Timoney, the upper-school programs at Tenney and the Marsh, transitions support at the high school, and inclusion support at the CGS. She explained that evaluation-team facilitators are not licensed administrators and suggested replacing them in three buildings with special-education administrators to provide program oversight and sign-off for compliance.
On the audit finding about being "out of compliance" in certain IEP areas, Bozak said the audit included anecdotal material and that systemic timeline problems were driven by staffing gaps earlier in the year when the district contracted for psychologists. "We were behind at the beginning of the year playing catch up all year, so we were out of compliance for some of those evaluations. I'd like to say we are caught up," she said.
The committee and administration also discussed caseload equity: the Marsh has 248 students with IEPs, Tenney 238 and Timoney 271, and the proposed counselors at CGS and Marsh are intended to even caseloads and support intensive case management for students from group-home placements such as Saint Anne's. Bozak said the district has held 68 best-interest meetings since the start of the school year to determine appropriate placements for students entering through foster or group-home care.
The administration said the requested positions are intended to reduce reliance on contracted services, improve timelines and strengthen on-site compliance and oversight. Committee members asked for further staffing counts and a peer administrative-cost comparison to help weigh the requests during follow-up workshops.
