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Q&A
Inquiry into IESP support and its impact on due process cases
2:40:18
·
151 sec
Council Member Justin Brannan inquires about funding for IESP support for students in nonpublic schools. DOE officials explain the funding allocation and its impact on due process cases.
- Funding was added for IESP support in the executive plan
- There's been a 30% decrease in due process complaints
- The investment is expected to have long-term benefits for public school students
- An RFP is out to increase hourly rates for related services, primarily benefiting public school students
Justin Brannan
2:40:18
Funding was added for IESP support for students in nonpublic schools in the executive plan, but I didn't see any funding added in these programs for public school students.
Christina Foti
2:40:31
Yes.
2:40:32
So the funding was added.
2:40:34
Think I'm gonna let my colleague answer your question, Tara, but just if I may say.
2:40:40
Know, IESP is an important example of how a short term investment is going to have long term year over year outcomes that reap benefit for public school students.
2:40:50
And so the investment currently is gonna be in direct service of students in private and parochial settings.
2:40:59
And we're seeing a 30% decrease in our due process complaints, which is gonna serve us over time.
2:41:04
But I'll pass it to my colleague.
Liz Vladek
2:41:06
Thank you.
2:41:07
Good afternoon, Chair General Counsel Liz Vladek.
2:41:11
Credit really goes to Deputy Chancellor Foti.
2:41:13
We've spoken many times before about the really explosive increase in due process cases that have been filed over the last eight years and how we've realized that those are not primarily Carter cases but rather families who do not seek a public education and want their children to go to a particular private school and have DOE pay for the services.
2:41:39
The decrease in the due process cases that we saw this year, 30% down so far, and context, that's after they've gone up 23 to 25% year over year, so a dramatic drop, is directly related to the ability of our committees on special education doing very aggressive and engaged outreach to families whose students have ISPs to do more to arrange services directly so that families are not put in a position of having to find their own provider or file a due process claim.
2:42:16
The investments that you're mentioning have done several things.
2:42:19
One of them was to increase the hourly rate for SETS services which we see at a very, very high rate in IESP cases.
2:42:29
But I would like to mention that in parallel to that on the public school side, Deputy Chancellor Foti's office has an RFP out to increase hourly rates for related services across the board, the primary beneficiaries of which of course are our public school students.
Justin Brannan
2:42:48
Okay.
2:42:49
Thank you.