Special education

An audit found racial disparities in how often kids were classified, inconsistent practices throughout the district and concerns about communication with families.

Some families of special education students have said that their children have not been doing well, academically or socially, with distance learning. Students who usually receive in-person services such as physical or occupational therapy cannot meet with therapists in person, while paraprofessionals who usually work with a child in person have to conduct one-to-one sessions electronically. 

On Friday, July 31, the district released details for special education students, including an in-person schedule for three-to-four hours per day, five days per week. But some parents have questioned if the plan, which would have special needs students learning in person from self-contained classes, offers enough services for special needs children, adheres to safety measures, and does not put undue pressure on the families.

The proposed plan involves dividing students into two groups, known as Mounties and Bulldogs, with the two groups alternating in-person two days a week, with remote learning the rest of the week. Families can also opt for all-remote learning without withdrawing their children from the district. 

By ERIN ROLL roll@montclairlocal.news Montclair received a perfect score on a special education compliance report from the New Jersey Department of Education. The report comes five years after Montclair and 75 other New Jersey districts were placed under a New Jersey Department of Education monitoring program...

By ERIN ROLL roll@montclairlocal.news Although the overall number of special education students dropped last school year, the district saw an increase in the number of students it sent out-of-district, and with it, an increase in money spent for special ed...

By ERIN ROLL roll@montclairlocal.news Families of students who have paraprofessionals as aides have been notified that the district could be moving from a one-to-one model to a shared model, Montclair school officials said. During budget discussions, school officials announced a $2...

By ERIN ROLL roll@montclairlocal.news The Montclair schools’ suspension report and the apparent likelihood of students of color being more likely than their peers to be suspended were the focus of the Jan. 10 board of education meeting. T...

By ERIN ROLL roll@montclairlocal.news The subject of suspensions and equity continued to come up for discussion at the Monday, Jan. 22, BOE meeting. The meeting - a relatively short one, lasting an hour and a half - also included a discussion of the district’s action plan for its special education services. A...

By ERIN ROLL roll@montclairlocal.news Students of color and special education students, especially boys, are disproportionately more likely to be suspended or reported for discipline issues in Montclair’s schools. Those were some of the findings in Montclair’s violence/vandalism and suspension reports, both of which were presented during the Wednesday, Jan. 10, board ...