At the Aug. 22 work session, RISD trustees heard an in-depth presentation from district Special Student Services staff about how special education services are provided to students in RISD. The wide-ranging presentation covered topics spanning from initial identification efforts of potential disabilities, to individual education plans, to the continuum of services that RISD provides to the staff that provides them, and how those services are funded.
“I urge any RISD parent, community member or stakeholder who is interested in the who, what, when, how, or why of special education to watch this presentation on our website,” said Superintendent Branum. “It’s a great resource for anyone who wants to better understand RISD’s approach to providing these needed services to kids.”
Key points of the presentation and discussion included:
- Consistent with national and state trends, the number of students identified with a disability in RISD has increased 30% since 2016, with the district serving more than 5,600 students in 2023-24.
- RISD works through a wide range of methods to identify students who may have a disability, and then works with families to evaluate them. RISD staff initially evaluated more than 1,600 students in 2023-24, a 32% increase in two years.
- 83% of RISD special education students receive services in either a general education inclusion setting or a blend of inclusion and partial day pullout into a special education resource setting.
- Approximately 15% of district special education students receive instruction in self-contained classrooms in a school, known as central programs, because not every school has the need for every type of self-contained classroom.
- Self-contained central program classrooms available at different schools around RISD, provide services for a wide variety of disabilities, from emotional/behavioral, to cognitive, to physical or medically fragile, to speech-related needs.
- Smaller numbers of students who are unable to attend school (homebound) require staff to work with students in their home setting.
- The district offers special education services to students until age 22 through the Transition Program, which partners with area employers to help teach young adults independence and basic job skills.
- Funding to educate students in need of special education services is provided through a combination of state funding, and federal grants. The average cost to provide special education services in RISD is more expensive than the combination of state and federal funding, and the per-student gap is growing. The district continues to provide students with necessary services under federal law, and must use general district operating funds to make up for the shortfall, which was approximately $8 million in 2023-24.
- There’s an ongoing shortage of qualified special education teachers around the country, state, and in highly-competitive north Texas. RISD is competitive with special education salaries and offers among the highest stipends in the area to attract and retain quality special education educators.
Highlights of recent celebrations of RISD special student services include:
- In July, RISD’s Dyslexia Training Center earned accreditation with dual international certifications – an elite achievement shared by just five school districts in Texas and the United States.
- As part of the 2024-25 budget approved in June, RISD trustees approved adding contract days, additional training, and compensation for district special education Central Program teachers and staff.
- The graduation rate of students receiving special education services in the Class of 2024 increased by 13% compared to the Class of 2023.
- RISD’s overall 2024 rate of college, career, and military readiness is 95% – 11% of those students receive special education services.
Watch the comprehensive Aug. 22 presentation of discussion about special education in RISD.
