Resident alleges lapses in IEP services at Malden High; superintendent says issue will be addressed

During the public comment period May 6, resident Bonnie Littlejohn told the Malden School Committee she had identified “multiple IEP violations at Malden High School.”

Littlejohn described a sequence in which a special education teacher was reassigned to a Team Chair position, an interim teacher filled the classroom without caregivers being informed, the interim left after roughly three months and the vacancy remained unfilled, which she said left some special education students without mandated services and increased the workload for co‑teachers. “This has resulted in special education students no longer receiving services from special education teachers required by law through their IEPs,” Littlejohn said, and she urged immediate action.

Superintendent Noriega‑Murphy thanked the speakers and said the district would pay closer attention to the details to ensure students receive their services. The superintendent’s remarks acknowledged the concerns raised but did not include an immediate remedial action plan or a timeline for staff replacements in the transcript.

Committee members asked clarifying questions elsewhere in the meeting about special education programming and efforts to return out‑of‑district students to Malden Public Schools.

The public comment record shows an allegation of possible noncompliance with IEP‑mandated services; the transcript records the complaint and the superintendent’s pledge to look into the matter but does not show any formal corrective action taken during the May 6 meeting.