The Juneau School District is combining some of its special education programs, changes district administrators say should help the programs operate more efficiently.
“We did have a reduction of two full-time special education teachers, and that’s how we’re accomplishing that,” said Brad Hoyt, the district’s director of student services, who oversees special education and other programs.
Hoyt said staff has notified all the families of those involved individually.
“Ninety-five percent were very supportive and understanding,” Hoyt said, which he said was appreciated by staff.
“It’s always difficult for a student to move from one school to the next,” he acknowledged.
Among the changes will be combining a Mendenhall River Elementary School class with a Glacier Valley Elementary School class together at Glacier Valley and doing the same with another Mendenhall River class and a Riverbend Elementary School class being combined at Mendenhall River.
That’s a total of about 15 students, but they are some of those with academic, behavioral or disability issues that take relatively high numbers of staff per student, Hoyt said.
The rationale behind both consolidations is low enrollment and trying to provide the best education possible without requiring the students to travel too far, he said
They’re trying to get a cluster where special education teachers can work together, when they can.
While the district is using the consolidation to help cope with the loss of staff, the goal is to provide the best service possible, he said.
“We would do this anyway,” even without the budget reduction, Hoyt said.
In a year, the district will also move a Floyd Dryden Middle School special education class to Dzantik’i Heeni Middle School, as an expected decrease in numbers make it more efficient to combine those programs.
Hoyt said when a special education teacher moved from Floyd Dryden to DZ in preperation for the change, some of the families asked if their students could move as well so they could remain with the same teacher.
• Contact reporter Pat Forgey at 523-2250 or at patrick.forgey@juneauempire.com.
Comments (5)
Add commentConfusing story
Does this mean they are making special education schools?
What did he mean when he said families wanted to follow the teacher?
@fisherwoman
go fish
I didn't get the impression
I didn't get the impression of making special Ed schools. Actually nothing that was written even hints at anything like that.
And it's also pretty obvious the families want their children to remain with the spec Ed teacher they already have.
District trying to cut costs, try the top end jsd, no more cuts without it coming from the administration side.
Out of Bounds
There is no way I would be OK with my student being bused out of my school zone just because the district could not provide them with the services they need in the school that their peers are all going to. That is unfairly indentifying them as Spec Ed (why are you going to DZ when you live a block away from FD?). If you decide to stay at FD, I think you would be being denied FAPE if you are not provided the Spec Ed services listed in the child’s IEP. I would be surprised if the child didn’t have a legal right to go to a school in his or her boundary.
Discrimination
It definitely sounds like they are making "special ed schools." How can people not see that?
"Combining programs" means moving and busing kids to a different school because they are a particular type of special needs.
So now Mendenhall River has no special needs kids in a program - they are being moved to Riverbend and Glacier Valley. Soon Floyd Dryden will ship all its kids to DZ?
One of my children was in special education in school --- I'd be livid if my son and daughter had been separated due to his disability.
That should be illegal.
95% are understanding -- really?
Busing special needs kids to magnet schools... what will the JSD do next?