GothamSchools — daily independent reporting on NYC public schools

The State Education Department’s proposal to relax some special education rules met resistance today from two New York City-based members of the Board of Regents.

The Bronx’s Betty Rosa and Brooklyn’s Kathleen Cashin were the only two members of a Board of Regents subcommittee to vote against the proposals, which would significantly reduce or eliminate the roles of people that are currently required to serve on a committee that supports student with disabilities.

Both Rosa and Cashin said they were concerned that scaling back services would hurt children who require individual education plans. Cashin questioned whether the proposals, which are meant to cut costs, would result in any kind of real savings.

“The whole mandate relief is not that expensive, relatively speaking, compared to the trauma that could be caused the family,” Cashin said.

Cashin was particularly concerned with the decision to eliminate the “parent member” role on the committee. The role, an unpaid position, is meant to provide additional support for parents whose students have disabilities.

But SED Deputy Commissioner Becky Cort, who presented the recommendations to the Regents, said the “parent member” role was duplicated by the school psychologist and other school staff who sit in on the meetings. In addition, she said, because the parent member wasn’t always available for meetings, finding a time when the entire committee could meet was frequently tricky. (more…)