Board signs off on out-of-district special-education placements and approves external provider rates

At the May 14 meeting the Butler Board of Education approved out-of-district placements for students requiring specialized services and accepted a slate of external-provider rates used to support those placements.

The minutes list student placements at The Phoenix Center with ESY tuition $9,413.80 and a 2026–27 school-year tuition of $84,724.20 for an indicated student; another Phoenix Center entry and a placement at CTC Academy are recorded with ESY and SY tuition lines (the minutes list a SY figure for CTC Academy of $96,217.74 in one entry). Funding account lines (for example 11-000-100-566-00-000 and 11-000-100-565-00-000) are cited next to each placement.

The board also approved contract rates for service providers and evaluators used in special-education programming and eligibility decisions: examples include Saint Clare’s Behavioral Health back-to-school evaluations at $250 per evaluation; Atlantic Health System–Chilton assessments (drug screens, BAT & medical assessment) at $312; High Focus Treatment Centers school-clearance assessments at $350; and J & B Therapy rates listed at $112.50 per hour with evaluation fees specified.

Why it matters: out-of-district placements and outside-evaluator rates can represent meaningful per-student expenditures and influence special-education budget planning. The minutes record both per-student tuition lines and provider billing rates.

Next steps: The contracted placements and provider rates will be charged to the listed budget codes during ESY and the 2026–27 school year; the board approved the CIS motions as presented.