Review Agenda Item

Meeting Date:

10/5/2018 - 7:00 PM

Category:

Accountability

Type:

Info

Subject:

Students with Disabilities Evaluation Report

ACPS 2025 Strategic Plan Goal:

Objective 1.1 Educational Excellence

ACPS will regularly assess and respond to the needs, interests, and abilities of individual students.

Objective 1.2 Achievement Gaps

ACPS will target academic achievement gaps and increase positive educational outcomes across race/ ethnicity, income, disability, and language subgroups.

Objective 1.3 Disproportionality

ACPS will focus on increasing representation of minority students in talented and gifted programs and in Honors and Advanced Placement courses; decreasing suspension rates of minority students, particularly males; and preventing over-identification of racial/ethnic minorities for remedial or special education services. ACPS will also focus on eliminating gender and racial/ethnic disparities among students enrolling in science, technology, engineering, math, and literature classes and in advanced classes such as honors and Advanced Placement.

Objective 6.2 Continuous Improvement

ACPS will engage in cycles of continuous improvement at every level of the school division, and it will employ evidence-based decision-making in its consideration of process improvements, policy making, and budgeting and accountability.

Policy:

IGBA - Programs for Students with Disabilities

Funding Source or Fiscal Impact (where applicable)

File Attachment:

181005_BoardMemo_Students with Disabilities Evaluation Report_v1.pdf

181005_Executive Summary_ACPS Comprehensive Review of Special Education_v1.pdf

181005_Full Report_ACPS Comprehensive Review of Special Education_v1.pdf

Agenda Item Summary:

The SWD Evaluation Report provides ACPS with critical insights into areas of ACPS programming and services for students with disabilities. The report finds that “ACPS has a solid foundation on which to build”; however, without “…focus, a strong vision from the superintendent and enacted by the senior leadership staff, an appropriate allocation of resources, mandated professional development, and clear, non-negotiable, accountability measures…” the division’s services for students with disabilities will stagnate. The information within the report will be utilized by the division to chart a purposeful course over the next three years for realizing success for students with disabilities and meeting the call of every student succeeds.

Background:

Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) has made a commitment to every student, parent, and community member that “Every Student Succeeds.” A critical component of ensuring that ACPS is offering the highest quality services to each student is through structured
reviews of essential programs.

The rationale for the evaluation of services to students with disabilities was to provide a comprehensive review of the current state of programs and services for students with disabilities, and their families, to inform the division and relevant stakeholders in areas of strengths and opportunities for improvement. Key stakeholder groups have been represented throughout the process ranging from the development of the guiding research questions and Request for Proposals (RFP) process to the ongoing work of developing an action plan in response to the findings of the report.

Recommendation:

The Superintendent recommends the Board review the SWD Evaluation Executive Summary and Report for future discussion regarding possible planning, programmatic, and/or budgetary changes.

Approvals:

Recommended By:
Signed By:
	Dr. Clinton Page - Chief Accountability Officer

Signed By:
	Dr. Gregory C. Hutchings, Jr. - Superintendent