MCCSC loses federal special education funds

Special education within the Monroe County Community School Corporation received financial help from federal stimulus money last year but will not be able to count on additional funds in the future.

Last year, the federal government granted MCCSC $764,400. The money will be spent during the next two years for special education, special education preschool, reading, educational technology and school lunch equipment.

The government did not provide additional stimulus money for this year, but some say MCCSC may not need the safety net.

Cathy Pratt, director of the Indiana Resource Center for Autism at the Indiana Institute of Disability and Community, said the lack of excess money may help educators reassess how efficient their methods are.

“It makes us re-examine what we do and reconsider if we are doing what is best for the children,” Pratt said.

But Pratt said she is concerned for the overall future of special education.

“There are kids with very high-intense needs and as resource gets more scarce for our teachers and children, less progress is made,” she said.

Pratt said the employment rate for adults on the autism spectrum is lower than she would like to see it, and thinks effective special education is the key to advancing more students with disabilities into an adult work community.

For now, the MCCSC budget committee is hoping to acquire two additional special education teachers. Before the positions can be confirmed, the proposal for how the referendum money should be spent must be approved.

The proposal is currently in the process of being reviewed and negotiated.

Administrators in the MCCSC special education department could not be reached for
comment.

Jennifer Perry, a former local high school language and speech teacher, said she quit her job to care for her autistic son.

Perry said even in a time of education budget cuts, she is happy with the special education program that her son is enrolled in at Summit Elementary School.

“It is the first time that I can remember where I can take Jacob to school and know that he is being taken care of,” Perry said.