Parent Feedback on Special Education Audit

The article in last week’s Star, "Audit Praises Special Ed Programs at SHUSD", said in reference to moderate to severely disabled students at the high school: “…mainstreaming of special ed students at St Helena High School has angered some parents.” That is incorrect. Indeed, the special ed students at the high school have always been included in classes appropriate for them with proper material and staff support. What “angered” me about the new program was that my son was in classes that were not appropriate for his level of learning, the district did not supply materials to adapt the curriculum, and he frequently attended class without the required aide. That is not mainstreaming.
In her full report, Dr Parker gives kudos to the new special ed staff who are building a great program at the high school. I am happy they are restoring a solid program this school year, because the first year of the new program was a complete failure. But I want to point out that much of what they are doing now is similar to the old program that they dismantled in 2008-09. For instance, this year the staff has forged a relationship with the Napa Unified Transition Program in order to develop their own (for moderate/severely disabled students aged 18-22). The Napa program is similar to the former St Helena program before 2008-09. Since Dr Parker was not able to observe the former program, there is no way she can compare the two and conclude that the new program is better.
But the real problem lies in how the administration handled this change and the board’s reaction to parents’ concerns. The district did not inform parents the former program was being dropped. We were ignored, criticized, and often met with hostility. When concerned parents approached the board in August 2008, we were shocked at their lack of response. And, our concerns at the time about the new program were realized -- it was nothing short of a disaster. So, the crux of the problem is not special ed per se. It is that the district is capable of making decisions detrimental to students’ education and treating parents with disrespect, and the board (excluding new trustee Alfaro) blindly supports those decisions.

Kelly Rios
St. Helena, CA