A haphazard attempt by Washington, D.C. school officials to return special education students to public schools from private placements is leaving parents feeling angry and left out.

School district officials say they now have the capability to serve many students with disabilities who they previously placed in private school programs at public expense. Through a so-called “reintegration plan” the district is pushing to bring special needs students back into the public school system.

But parents, who in many cases only recently held spring individualized education plan, or IEP, meetings, were shocked to learn after the fact that their children’s private placements would be coming to an end.

Washington, D.C. public schools have long struggled to appropriately serve students with disabilities, leading more than 25 percent of special education students to be placed in private schools locally and as far away as Colorado. Now school officials say they’re working to increase inclusion throughout the district and are better able to serve a wider variety of students in-house.

There’s no denying, however, that money is likely one motivator for the reintegration plan, as savings in special education have been cited as a way to pay for a proposed teachers contract, reports The Washington Post. To read more click here.

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