REMARKS
Public Advocate Jumaane Williams addresses challenges in special education services
0:08:42
ยท
3 min
Public Advocate Jumaane Williams addresses the NYC Council Committee on Education, highlighting significant challenges in the provision of special education services. He discusses the city's failure to meet federal standards, understaffing issues, transportation problems, and concerns about equity in access to appropriate education for students with disabilities.
- Williams criticizes the DOE's handling of a June 1st application deadline for special education services in non-public schools, which affected about 35,100 families.
- He points out a record $1.35 billion spent on private schools for students with disabilities, creating a two-tiered system favoring wealthy families.
- Williams emphasizes the need to prioritize education for all students regardless of disability status to create a more inclusive and supportive school system.
Jumaane Williams
0:08:42
Thank you, madam chair.
0:08:44
Good afternoon.
0:08:45
My name is Jumaane Williams, public advocate for the city of New York.
0:08:49
I should say still public advocate.
0:08:51
I'd like to thank chair Joseph and the members of the Committee on Education for holding this important hearing.
0:08:57
Under the federal individual, federal individuals with disability education act or IDEA, all eligible students with disabilities are entitled for to a free appropriate public education and special education services.
0:09:08
This includes providing services to students who do not attend public schools and instead attend private or religious schools or are or are homeschooled.
0:09:17
It is an understatement that New York City is failing to meet these standards, leaving many children without services falling behind or unable to attend school at all.
0:09:25
Many students with disabilities face barriers to education even before they enter the doors of the school.
0:09:29
City is currently experiencing an understaffing crisis among occupational therapists, physical therapists, speech therapists, and counselors.
0:09:36
Many students cannot ride the bus without a paraprofessional and sometimes a nurse, but there are simply not enough to go around, leaving many students stuck at home unless a caregiver can find alternative transportation.
0:09:46
Additionally, every year when school starts, students who require transportation and their parents report delays in being granted bus services, leaving many families without busing on the 1st day.
0:09:56
Just before just before the beginning of the school year, many parents of special education students and non public excuse me, schools received notice that their student services would not be provided due to a little known and previously unenforced application deadline of June 1st.
0:10:09
This requirement affects about 35100 families and left many families paying out of pocket for services or unable to send their school kids to school at all.
0:10:17
In December, the Department of Education sent a letter to parents who had missed the deadline and said children could begin receiving services, but only if parents waived their rights to sue DOE.
0:10:27
The waiver reportedly was vaguely worded, did not describe what services students were to receive, and would disallow parents from suing the DOE for the rest of the school year if, for example, students' IEPs were not followed.
0:10:40
This is deeply concerning, and it's particularly troubling that it took 3 months for the DOE to offer legally mandated services to students with disabilities, causing many to fall behind.
0:10:48
Many families pull their disabled students from the public school education system and enroll them in private schools, then sue the city for reimbursement.
0:10:55
Last year, the city spent a record breaking $1,350,000,000 to cover the cost of private schools and programs for students with disabilities who were not being adequately served in their schools.
0:11:07
Parents are entitled to do this under federal and state law, but many low income families and disabled students who cannot afford to front private school tuition and hire lawyers are often forced to continue attending their local public school even if their student is not receiving the support services that they need.
0:11:21
By not serving every student they can in their local public schools, the city has effectively created a 2 tiered system of education where wealthy families can secure the education their kids need and poorer students fall farther and farther behind.
0:11:34
I have to point out as the cost of that education excuse me, that that, 1st tier education into private schools goes up, that's less money that goes into the education system to fix some of the problems I spoke about.
0:11:47
Until the city meaningfully prioritizes education to all students regardless of disability status, we'll continue to spend those large amounts of money on educating students in public schools, money that, as I mentioned, can be used to transform our school system into one that is is welcoming, diverse, inclusive, and supportive for all students.
0:12:03
How we fund our schools is deflect reflective of our values, and there's a lot of work to be done before we can say that York City Public Schools welcomes and values students with disabilities.
0:12:12
I wanna thank you as a public school baby myself from preschool to master's.
0:12:16
It is a a a great place to get an education with, many issues that we have to address, and we need all the money to be able to do that.
0:12:23
So hopefully, we can figure out how to fix this problem.
0:12:26
Thank you.