District officials say changes have been made in special ed
School district officials are hoping the City Council will finally release a half million dollars in funding currently withheld pending changes in a stricken special education department, the request coming after a ban on the much-maligned confidentiality clauses and resignation of a key figure in the controversy.
The council, which decided last summer to hold onto approximately $530,000 from the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District after hearing concerning reports from parents, will receive a status report tonight from district leaders about the revamping efforts in special education.
Interim Superintendent Tim Cuneo recently sent a letter to City Manager Lamont Ewell formally requesting the money be released, citing a number of actions that have been taken to create a culture of inclusion and collaboration in a department once criticized for intimidating parents.
2D5,“My commitment is to make sure that our stakeholders are included in providing input and advice as it relates to special education,” Cuneo said. “Hopefully we can build a model that can be used in the future in the district, a model of how our community participates in all aspects of the district’s programs.”
The meeting tonight between the council and school officials will also be a formal introduction of Cuneo, who was appointed as the temporary district head just a few weeks ago, to City Hall.
Whether the money will be transferred to the district any time soon will be determined by the report, city officials said.
“It depends on what they present and show how much they’ve accomplished,” Mayor Herb Katz said.
The department, its policies and practices, have evolved much since the previous council meeting with former Superintendent Dianne Talarico in April, according to school officials. Talarico, who now heads the Burlingame School District, requested during that meeting the money be held until all of the conditions previously imposed by the council were fulfilled.
Perhaps the most notable changes are in the shuffle in the district’s central office following the resignation of former Deputy Superintendent Tim Walker, who oversaw special education. Those responsibilities now fall under Chief Academic Officer Sally Chou.
Oscar de la Torre, the president of the Board of Education, pointed out that officials took a significant step toward the healing process in May when it imposed a full moratorium on confidentiality clauses.
The clauses were the source of much grief among parents in the program. Dubbed as “secret deals,” the clauses were written into settlement agreements, which were signed by parents after an impasse was reached in the negotiations for the Individualized Education Plan, which outlined services that special education students received during the year.
In an effort to instill lost confidence in the program, the board last year placed a moratorium on confidentiality clauses unless they were requested by the parent. District negotiators were directed to notify all parties during the IEP process of the moratorium and all new confidentiality clauses must’ve been asked for by the parent.
A total of 37 settlement agreements had been entered into from the moratorium’s enactment in July 2007 until April of this year. Approximately 28 had a confidentiality clause and nine settlements were written without one.
Talarico said in April that she was assured by her staff that parents were all notified up front about the moratorium. Several parents with a confidentiality clause have since argued otherwise.
The council requested a few months ago information as to whether there was any wrongdoing by district staff in the IEP process following the moratorium.
Mike Matthews, the assistant superintendent for human resources, has since reported that there is no evidence that the moratorium was violated.
Lee Jones, the co-chair of the Special Education District Advisory Committee (SEDAC), said the council’s questions have yet to be answered.
“I very much want us to get this money … but there is still no transparency and accountability in this district regarding special education,” she said.
One of the most important steps that have been taken is the formation of the PTA Council’s Special Education Committee, following the model of the San Ramon Valley Unified School District which underwent its own departmental challenges,” Jones said.
6E5,“The committee will have a very positive effect for parents and students at the school site,” she said.
The PTA’s committee is just one of several actions that have taken place, including the formation of a Special Education Design Team, which will assist the district in reviewing practices and developing new policies.
The district is also in the process of contracting a mediator for resolving disagreements over services.
“The district is working with parents and staff to make effective, long-term changes in special ed and I’m excited to be working in that,” Rebecca Kennerly, the PTA Council president, said. “I think those changes will improve the overall qualify of the feeling that parents have in our school district.”
Perhaps most important for the council to determine whether there’s any real difference in the department is to gauge parent confidence in the district, Ken Haker, the co-chair of SEDAC, said.
“Do they feel that things have changed?” Haker said. “In that respect, has the IEP process been fortified?”
The half million dollars has been lingering in the minds of school officials for more than year, haunting them during budget preparation seasons when cuts are being made at both the state and local level.
“That money right there pretty much pays for all of the outreach workers at Santa Monica High School,” de la Torre said. “It can pay for a variety of intervention programs we have for at-risk youth.”
Jump hedline: District officials say changes have been made in special ed
Suggested pullquote: “I very much want us to get this money … but there is still no transparency and accountability in this district regarding special education.”
Lee Jones
Co-Chair, Special Education District Advisory Committee
Lucida Grande 40, 4 0 400 0¬ 1 0 40, Minion 40, 4 0 231A 0¬ 1 0
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 22, 2008. Read the original PDF.