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Parent and union leaders tell CUSD board push-in model is leaving special-education students without support
Summary
A parent and elected union representatives told the Carpinteria Unified School District board that recent implementation of a push-in model and staffing reductions have left students with IEPs under-supported, cited declining grades and rising legal costs, and urged clearer, nonnegotiable inclusion policies and supports.
Cassie Pñena, a parent of two children in the district, urged the Carpinteria Unified School District board to stop treating inclusion as optional and to provide concrete supports for students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).
"Inclusion is not optional. It is the law," Pñena said, citing "IDA, Section 504, the California Education Code, [and] the Individuals with Disabilities Act," and describing her son Julian’s positive experience in inclusive classrooms. She told the board she has observed resistance to the district’s push-in model at Carpenter Middle School and said that casual or derogatory labels such as "sped kids" are inappropriate and harmful.
Pñena and a speaker representing elected union leadership said the district has implemented the push-in model hastily, reduced special-education staffing and services, and failed to produce the data needed to show whether the district is meeting state placement expectations. The union speaker alleged several specific effects: a 14% reduction in identified special-education students, a 31% drop in initial assessments, a roughly 15% cut in special-education staff, and reduced individualized support time (described in the comment as "15 minutes three times a week" in one example). The union also said D/F rates and other assessment results indicate declining achievement among affected students.
"When inclusion is done right, students do not fall behind, they grow," Pñena said, adding that her son’s academic success reflects sustained supports and collaboration among parents, teachers, and special-education teams.
Union leadership raised fiscal consequences and legal exposure tied to special-education services, citing more than $100,000 in recent special-education legal costs and referencing a settlement figure referenced in the comment (described in the transcript as $125,000 for a named case). The union urged the board to produce complete, nonselective data about placement, outcomes and staffing and to stop what it called performative presentations that omit the program’s practical impact.
Board members did not announce a new formal directive or vote in response to the public-comments segment. The board later proceeded with its agenda items, including a separate staff presentation and budget discussion that acknowledged special-education expenditures and projected reserves.
Why it matters: Parents and employee representatives said they see both instructional and fiscal risks from recent changes to special-education delivery. The comments called for clearer, enforceable expectations, better data reporting to the community, and restoration of adequate special-education staffing and pull-out supports where necessary.
What’s next: The board heard the comments during public comment; no formal policy change or motion addressing the union’s requests was recorded during the meeting. Union negotiators have submitted bargaining openers for 2026–27, and the union signaled it may pursue legal or bargaining remedies if program implementation and public-accountability concerns are not addressed.
