Purpose:

To ensure that students in approved private special education schools are being provided with an appropriate education as defined in the Massachusetts state constitution and as defined under the IDEA federal law 20 U.S.C. § 6368(3)(4)(5)(6)(7) and in the state’s ESSA plan for accountability.

Preamble:

Instructors who work in the approved private special education schools established under chapter 71B work with a highly vulnerable population of students. Students who are placed in these programs have usually struggled in the public school system for many years, and families typically have to reach a settlement with a school district to gain a placement in one of these taxpayer funded private programs. The private schools, for their part, argue that the services they provide are more robust than a public school’s and that they will be able to remediate the key foundational skills students are lacking. Students are meant to gain the skills they need to be able to thrive in the general education setting. Currently, there is no empirical source of data or data profile kept on the approved programs despite receiving substantial state funding. MCAS scores are rolled back into the sending district, and these programs are not evaluated for their curriculum. This has established a two-tiered system of accountability that favors the private interest that is, in fact, not private, given the state funding being used for these programs. It is critical that the expertise of the educators working in these programs be publicly available information, and that these staff members hold the appropriate licensure and training credentials to work with these students.

Requirements:

Any staff member and administrator working in an approved private special education school in the commonwealth of Massachusetts must possess a professional license in moderate or severe disabilities in order to receive and maintain employment in an approved private special education school and to work with students in this setting. Furthermore, staff and administration must hold proven and appropriate credentials in evidence-based programming that meet the requirements of the federal and state law 20 U.S.C. § 6368(3)(4)(5)(6)(7) (e.g Lindamood Bell, Orton Gillingham, Corrective Reading, REWARDS). These credentials and licensure must be made available publicly on the website of the approved private special education school in order to receive funds from the commonwealth.

Approved Private Schools may NOT be granted waivers or emergency licenses for staff at any time. Any staff currently teaching in these settings without the proper certification and training must acquire these credentials within a six month period in order to retain their position.

Furthermore, if any significant number of staff and administration of an approved private special education school lack these credentials, the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education shall remove accreditation status until such time as the staff and administration are properly licensed and credentialed with special education licensure and the appropriate training for the designated population. Staff and administration must have both the professional license and at least two credentials in an evidence-based approach, and sufficient time having been trained in an evidence-based approach, to be able to work with students in an approved private special education school setting.

Data:

Staff and administrators working in the approved private special education schools must adhere to the guidance from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education on progress monitoring. If there is not an approved progress monitoring system in place, the approved private school will not be able to remain accredited. Data from the progress monitoring system, approved by the federal and state agencies, must be shared with parents and guardians, advocates, surrogate special education parents, the sending school district, and any other stakeholders in the student’s education on a weekly basis.

Decisions for instruction and intervention must be based on, and provably, based on this progress data to ensure that students are not being provided with an intervention that does not work, or if the need of the student changes following a successful intervention.

Professional Development:

Professional Development in approved private special education schools cannot be internally driven. Outside professionals must be brought into the school to provide training and guidance for staff and administrators in the school. The professional development cannot be based on approaches or programming that does not meet the standards set out in the IDEA and ESSA laws as well as state policies, regulations, and procedures (e.g constructivist approaches). Professional development for staff and administrators must be made available publicly on the website of the approved private special education school in order to be considered valid. The credentials of presenters must be provided along with the nature of the professional development. The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education must first approve the professional development before it can be implemented to ensure that the professional development is aligned with rigorous scientific evidence as established in the state and federal law.