MEDWAY – Superintendent Armand Pires and Director of Student Services Kathleen Bernklow are pleased to announce that the Medway Public Schools has received a report from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education that showed positive results in the district’s initiatives and indicators relating to special education equity.
The report outlined five initiatives and indicators, and in none of these areas were the Medway Public Schools flagged as having inequities or needing improvement.
The report, which was received Thursday, Oct. 15, is part of DESE’s priority to increase educational access and equity for the state’s most marginalized students, especially students with disabilities. This priority necessitates that inequities are identified in special education and how local districts can respond to them.
The five areas in the report include:
Indicators 4A and 4B, required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), measure whether students with IEPs from certain racial and ethnic groups are suspended or expelled more than students with IEPs statewide. Medway Public Schools was listed as “Not Identified” in these categories in their report.
Indicators 9 and 10, also required by IDEA, measure whether students from certain racial and ethnic groups are disproportionately receiving special education services, both in general and in specific disability categories, because they were inappropriately determined eligible for special education services. Medway Public Schools was listed as “Not Flagged” in these categories in their report.
Significant Disproportionality, also required by IDEA, measures whether students from certain racial and ethnic groups are disproportionately receiving special education services in specific disability categories, whether they are disproportionately placed in certain settings, and whether they are disproportionately receiving certain kinds of disciplinary removals. Medway Public Schools was listed as “Not Identified or At-Risk” in this category in their report.
“The positive news we received in DESE’s Special Education Equity report is shared by the entire special education team in the Medway Public Schools, as well as the district as a whole,” Director Bernklow said. “We will continue to ensure that all students have equal access to the highest level of education as possible, and that no group of students is disproportionately treated in any way. This has always been a top priority for Superintendent Pires and the entire school administration, and we are pleased that this report reinforces those goals and values.”
For more information on the report and the initiatives and indicators measured by DESE, click here.
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