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Midland ISD unveils nine-goal special education strategic plan after program audit
Summary
District officials presented a three-phased special education strategic plan to address audit findings, with nine goals covering safety, written procedures, behavior supports, instruction, staffing, IEP quality, LRE, compliance and evaluation workload; the plan emphasizes monthly dashboards, quarterly audits and board reporting.
Midland ISD presented a long-term strategic plan for its special education program during the May 19 board meeting, detailing nine goals developed from an ongoing audit and program review intended to stabilize services and improve compliance and student outcomes.
Miss Shockley outlined a three'phase approach: phase one focuses on stabilizing safety, staffing and operational gaps; phase two builds capacity through procedures and training; phase three embeds systems for long'term sustainability. "Every goal that has been identified links back to specific audit findings," she said, noting work already underway to implement daily walkthroughs, safety standards, and a procedures framework.
The plan's nine goals include student safety, written processes and procedures, behavior supports to reduce exclusionary discipline, specially designed instruction fidelity, staffing and recruitment, IEP quality, least restrictive environment (LRE) placement targets, compliance maintenance (child find and timelines), and evaluation workload management. Implementation features monthly dashboards, quarterly deep dives and semiannual board syntheses.
Administration asked for sustained board support for investments in training and staffing and for continued oversight through the proposed reporting cadence. Trustees and staff discussed staffing targets (including the need for diagnosticians and bilingual paraprofessionals) and asked for further detail in the finalized audit and staffing analysis expected next month.
Why this matters: The plan responds to an external program audit and aims to address student safety, legal compliance and instructional quality for students with disabilities across the district. It sets measurable monitoring and reporting expectations to the board.
What to watch for: The finalized program audit and staffing analysis, recruitment results for diagnosticians and psychologists, monthly compliance dashboards and the June program report to the board.
