Superintendent Update on the Special Education Program Review, Feb. 20, 2025

February 21st, 2025

The following message was sent to the HCPSS community by HCPSS Superintendent William J. Barnes on Feb. 20, 2025:

In November, Research Triangle Institute (RTI) was approved to perform the program review, and their work has been progressing. They have had several conversations with staff and developed a staff survey which was distributed and received over 1,000 submissions. I became aware of some staff members who missed the opportunity to complete the survey before it closed, so I have asked that it be reopened.

Next week, we will distribute another survey from RTI to families and other external stakeholders that will also be open through March 28th. Please be on the lookout for this opportunity to provide feedback and inform improvements to our special education services.

As part of my recently released strategic plan, I made it a key strategy to “redesign special education.” I chose the verb “redesign” intentionally because there are aspects of our special education program that need to be rebuilt. Many special educators, related service providers, central office staff, school administrators, parents/guardians, and community members have elevated the need for a complete reimagination of the program given that components of our delivery and support model have been in place for several decades.

We have phenomenal special educators and special education teams in our system, and it is my intent to establish a model of service delivery that enables and empowers each of them to do what they do best – serve and support students who have many of the greatest needs in an inclusive environment where students experience a true sense of belonging. Too many members of our special education teams are overburdened with high caseloads and additional paperwork responsibilities required by law. I appreciate all staff who have reached out to me and provided much needed perspective. In addition to HCPSS staff, I also appreciate leaders from the Special Education Community Advisory Committee (SECAC), Autism Society of Maryland (AUSOM), and leaders from the Howard County Education Association (HCEA) and Howard County Association of Supervisors and Administrators (HCASA) for making this a priority and elevating the needs of our students, staff, and families.

I know we serve many students and families with Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSPs) and Individualized Education Programs (IEP) very well. But there are others that we are not serving as well as we should, and as well as they deserve. I am also convinced that we must create new structures that allow our talented special education teams to serve every student the way they deserve.

It’s not a secret that Howard County is a destination county for special education services based on our reputation for providing high levels of instruction and support in inclusive environments. But we understand that we can’t continue to do what we have always done and hope for the same results. The needs of our students, staff and families have evolved, and so shall we.

I appreciate your participation in this process so we may redesign a special education delivery and support model that works for our students and families.