December 17, 2024 By Carol Britton Meyer
Following a Hingham Public Schools district evaluation of special education programs and services last year, the results were presented to the school committee in March — with an update this week by Interim Executive Director of Student Services Barbara Cataldo.
“The evaluation focused on the current status of special education within the district, looking specifically at our current programs and services,” Chair Nes Correnti told the Hingham Anchor in response to a follow-up email. “This included taking a look at what was working well and also concerns from staff and parents.” Long- and short-term recommendations were included in the report.
The HPS strategic plan summarizes the district’s plan to address the concerns that were noted in the report.
Strengths of the HPS’ current special education programming highlighted in the evaluation include:
- Gradual efforts to introduce a Tiered System of Instruction for academics and social and emotional learning (SEL) are evident.
- Continuum of programs and services for students within various disability groups exists in the district at all levels.
- A commitment to inclusion and SEL well-being of the students is present in the district.
- Student IEPs (Individualized Education Program) provide a detailed picture of the student, their strengths, and their needs, with disabilities clearly defined. Assessment data is integrated into the student performance profile.
The special education program evaluation also highlighted several areas of need:
- IEPs include a host of accommodations that are best practice and not specific to the disability or the student and that they include measurable data to indicate performance levels yet inconsistently incorporate specific benchmark data within the goals and objectives.
- School-based personnel do not understand the entrance/exit criteria for numerous special education programs and services.
- The district has invested in developing specialized programs but not in the consultation and monitoring needed for effective programming.
- Details are not consistently taken, analyzed, and integrated into best practices, except for the programs that provide services to students on the autism spectrum (ASD) or students with similar needs.
- There is a need for more frequent and in-depth training opportunities in multiple areas — including eligibility determination, instructional and behavioral interventions, and grading of students with disabilities.
“Originally, we intended to develop a three-year plan to address the areas of need identified in the program evaluation,” Correnti explained. “As the year concluded, we realized that developing a one-year plan and working through the goals would allow us to grow and target the subsequent years.”
The next permanent executive director will further develop the plan “to meet the needs of the Hingham Public Schools,” according to Correnti. “In addition, we can engage stakeholders in understanding the findings and potential next steps.”
Correnti outlined four goals that address the needs identified in the special education program evaluation:
- Special education programming — Sustain ongoing development and develop infrastructure for HPS specialized programming for students with disabilities — including preschool, SEL programs, and language-based programming, among others.
- Inclusive practices — Enhance and expand instructional strategies, procedures, and staffing in order to ensure inclusive practices for all HPS students.
- Communication/collaboration/relationships — Support the development of strong relationships with families of students with special needs.
- Professional development — Implement a meaningful, comprehensive professional development plan that strengthens inclusive practices within general education programs and leads to improved outcomes for students with disabilities.
Supt. of Schools Katie Roberts and Cataldo intend to provide updates on progress toward the outlined objectives three times during the school year and will also be shared with other stakeholders — including staff, families, and the Hingham Special Education Parent Advisory Council.