As a parent of a disabled child, I have seen services diminish gradually over the last few years, while the numbers of children in need of services grow. There are children in my daughter's classroom (self contained) who in my opinion do NOT need special services. The kids need a prescription for Ritalin and for their parent's to get off their lazy butts and actually..gasp..PARENT their children. There are kids in this classroom who's parents have never taught them a thing at home. They're too lazy & are too used to going to the state for help. These kids are smart kids, for the most part, but no one has ever turned off the TV or gotten off the computer long enough to teach them how to read and write, or tie their shoes. So the children then get shipped off to pre-K and guess what? Don't know a single letter of the alphabet, can't write their names and act out...so off to special ed they go.

My daughter was 18 months old when she was diagnosed with autism. It's severe and she's globally affected. By the time she was 4, she could read, write, count and you can bet that kid could tie her own shoes and I taught her. . My kid is my responsibility, not the states and I'm mad as heck that MORE of the services that are so important to kids who genuinely need them are going to continue to be cut.

I think it's a complete disservice to our state and our country to ignore the needs of "special needs" children. First of all, they must "learn" in order to become "independent adults"... otherwise we will have a huge sector of society who will be unable to read, write, and basically function in their adult world. If that happens, we will pay the price by having to support these "dependent" adults, rather than them being "independent" and having them support themselves.

Just common sense to me....

As a person who works with both regular and special education students, I am scared that Gendron is proposing changes based on costs. She has proven herself a liar with figures many times over. She will propose some twisted piece of legislation and get it shoved down the yes-man legislature by claiming it will be better for kids and getting baldy to put it in a spending bill. If you have a special needs child, start looking for a lawyer to fight for every service needed if Gendron gets her way.

Yes, many kids would benefit from parents spending more time with them. However, there are also many parents who don't have time as both have to work, and they feel guilty as hell about it.

I have a child with autism who has benefited tremendously from his special ed services. His needs are minimal--he only needs to go in for math and English, and only for some one on one help (he does the same math as the "normal kids"). He also learns how to communicate socially with other children by the use of a "social stories" program. I'm not going to be happy if he loses these services. Susan Gendron needs to stick to her specialty...whatever that is. There are federal laws on the books for kids with "real" disorders, as opposed to those disorders that come from parents who refuse to parent, and I'll be damned if I won't right tooth and nail to make sure my kid gets what he's supposed to. He's no less "special" than anyone else's kids and I'm not going to let a bunch of bureaucrats ruin his life because they're complelely inept.

I believe the state will fund 1 ed tech for each 100 students, after that the school pays for the rest. I may be wrong. Now the rest of the story, I live in a district that has 1400 students. The state will pay for 14 ed techs I beleiee. We have over 130 ed techs on the payroll. I think something is wrong. I am not bashing the students that need this, I believe districts are putting on students that should be listed as special needs.

Soory, my numbers are wrong. It should read 76. This is still well above the 14 the state pays for.

Special ed is just out of control and Gendron is absolutely correct. Every child is not mentally or emotionally equipped for college. Period. All children should be offered a chance at education, but if because of some unfortunate disability they are not able to progress in any meaningful way, then the taxpayers should not be forced to try and educate these kids at a cost of millions until they are 21. I have such a child. His brain irregularities are such that he could not progress beyond the second grade. Maine, however, at a cost approaching a million dollars, was forced to " educate " my child until he turned 21. It would have been much better for the child and for the State to simply stop trying to educate him and perhaps try to provide some continuing smaller financial assistance into the future. Special ed needs an overhaul, and parents need to come to grips with the fact that Johnny may never become a college graduate, and that all children are not born equal.

I am sick and tired of this State solving its money problems n the backs of disadvantaged children. First, huge cuts to the State's child welfare budget, a systematic dismantling of the residential system of care and now this. Why are they consistently going after this vulnerable group? I fear its because they are the easiest (and most voiceless) targets.

My brother taught special ed for 22 years in Maine. I think people who say "special ed services in schools have diminished" are totally WRONG! He taught at an alternative school where special ed students with behavior issues would come to school and just sleep! Or if they didn't sleep they refused to do any type of work or even try to listen to the teacher!! I'm sure taxpayers would love to hear how their money is supporting special ed students that sleep, or refuse to be educated!! Are u kidding me??? He also told me that out of the 22 years of educating kids, who had identified behavioral issues, 95+ percent of kids that graduated ended up in the jail, unemployed, or living off your tax dollars!!! And the cost to educate these students in a public alternative school/regional school was about 30,000 dollars!! For one student!!! Listen, 30 years ago special ed kids were barely educated at all. ENOUGH is ENOUGH!! I'm all for educating a kid with mental disabilities, but not put the tax payers in the poor house!!! PROPERTY OWNERS, think about how much you pay in property taxes. Then think about how much of that goes towards kids, who spend the day assualting teachers, refusing to learn, sleeping, disrupting the learning of others, BECAUSE IT"S A LOT!!!

SPECIAL EDUCATION=EXPENSIVE EDUCATION!!

There are to many people on welfare that can't take care of their own, and keep having children so they can get more welfare. This sounds awful but it is true. If you can't raise your children, you shouldn't have them.

Gendron has led the royal screw up of the education system, by pushing for and then demanding consolidations.....and now she wants to "fix" the special ed system. Maybe if they had forbidden school districts to grant 5 year contracts to their administrators, (in anticipation of the RSU becoming a reality), there would be no duplicate positions in RSU's and no-one getting paid administrator's wages for not doing administration work. Therefore lots of money available for special needs children.....that said, there are LOTS of children with behavioral problems in special ed classes, and special classes at my school allow the kids to do what they want, when they want, generally, so the behavioral problems, that shouldn't be in special ed classes to begin with, are never addressed.

A wonderful money-saving scheme for the state to consider would be to close down the University of Maine's entire College of Education program and instead recruit teachers from the ranks of the educated. While not every educated person with ambitions of teaching is cut out to do so, what is certain is people who actually know something make better teachers than the ignorant who have spent their years at college making feltboards and regurgitating spoon-fed humbug.

Of course this won't happen because the many education industry insiders like our present commissioner are firmly in charge. They'd rather continue presiding over an empire that does a mediocre job. When called upon to look for economies they'd rather cheat those who are most defenseless.

"For example, the number of students identified with emotional disabilities in Androscoggin County is four times that of Franklin County, and Penobscot County has three times more cases of students with autism than in Lincoln County."

Well, DUH! Did the McKinsey report take into account such factors as relative population of the various counties around the state? A county with a higher population overall is going to have a higher numbers of identified students overall. Simple math. I don't know about the specific populations of the counties cited in this article, but in general, on cannot talk about having wide variations in reporting/identification of special ed students and blame it on definitions and interpretations without first acknowledging that population is going to drive numbers.

In the case of the rates of autism in Penobscot County versus Lincoln County, did the report take into account that there are several school systems in Penobscot County that have really excellent autism programs and therefore offer stellar supports for autistic students? Families are moving into these school systems in order to take advantage of the excellent support services for their affected child/children. That will drive numbers up.

Look at how Ms. Gendron handled consolidation and then decide if she's really the right person to be realigning our special education services. I agree that special education costs are skyrocketing, but I totally disagree with allowing this current administration to tinker with the system. They have proven their ineptitude already.

The Baldacci administration has systematically been dismantling education in this state since it took office. Every year we have seen cuts to the education budget all because of the financial mismanagement of this governor. Because of Baldacci we will soon have no local schools and even sooner no real university. On the Orono campus they are talking of getting rid of 40% of the faculty and eliminating several majors because of a state cut to the budget.

BACKSHORE-------- i find your comment to be very inappropriate and ignorent to say the least... not every child out there is needs ritalin and its not all because of parents. children are disabled due to avaring factor.. i agree some might be parents, but you also have to look at the teachers to. alot of them out there dont want anything to do with a disabled child. they want a normal room and have the tendancy to shrug off the other child.. you can say no, however i sit here with a disabled child and have been down this road.. i eventually ended up getting the diabilites right center involved in order to get a better education for my son and make sure that things were done right. did you know even if you have an IEP in place most of the time the school doesnt go by that.. ritalin.. well that only helps a little- it helps with attention and hyperness but what about the rest of the needs of this child? my son is 5 and yes is treated by ritalin which has helped considerable... but is that my fault he needs it? just like is it your fault your daughter is atistic? no... so until u know why and what is wrong with a child u really should shut ur mouth! oh by the way i was really lucky to have my 4 children even ythough two have passed away. mt children are truly miracles born at 20 and 26 weeks passed away then i have a 28 week and a 32 week that were very fortunate to have survived. and just by being a premie sets them up for a long raod to plow just to get caught up with their peers. my 5 year old has just entered pre-K and guess what he dont know his letters or how to spell his name.. yet he is learning.. and by the wayI have been very active of my child he has recieved services since he was about 6 months old.. so how dare you run your chops about this. He has been in a structured preschool program since he has been two and guess what.. he didnt even talk till he was three... even though you think some of these kids dont need it.. you really need to understand all the issues. there is alot of things that are disabaling.. but yet again.. some are parents not doing anything.. rather it be they dont care or dont know where to turn to...

HERES A GREAT BOOK FOR YOU TO READ>> MAYBE THEN YOU WILL HAVE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF CHILDREN THE EXPLOSIVE CHILD BY ROSS W GREENE PH.D

My son is severe ADHD, has a unidentified mood disorder-- to young to diagnose bio polar-- has sensory issues, still is not potty trained, is ODD which is a diffance disorder and social phobia. on top of being a premie.. 2 pounds at birth continues to get sick and miss lots of school... glad that ur daughter is doin g well however u need to look at the rest of us that are trying everything we can do and still haveing issues........

and to do away with more services is just totally wrong!!

We don't need to standardize eligibility for special ed. We need to fundamentally change education. Every child should be assessed every year and a personalized education plan developed for that student. Clearly, educating every child to their highest potential is the highest priority of the people of Maine.

PeterTaber wrote: " A wonderful money-saving scheme for the state to consider would be to close down the University of Maine's entire College of Education program and instead recruit teachers from the ranks of the educated. While not every educated person with ambitions of teaching is cut out to do so, what is certain is people who actually know something make better teachers than the ignorant who have spent their years at college making feltboards and regurgitating spoon-fed humbug. "

PeterTaber - It must take a very strong ego and great sense of self-superiority for you to refer to ALL educators as " the ignorant who have spent their years at college making feltboards and regurgitating spoon-fed humbug. " Obviously there are a few bad educators in the system, just like there are bad employees in any role, but having been married to an educator for 30+ years and personally knowing many others, I can testify that most of our educators are intelligent, hard working, dedicated (and dramatically underpaid). I know of a special ed teacher who recently had one of her students defecate in their clothing and then put his hands in it. Who do you think had to take that child to the restroom and get her totally cleaned up? That's right, the same "ignorant" educator that leaves for school every morning anxious to start her day in one of the more difficult and important jobs in America - teaching .... and all for a whopping $30k per year. I get the feeling from your posts that the only way you'd be involved in "shi@" is if you could use it to your advantage to smear it all over another person or group, as you've done with your scathing assessment of all educators in your post.

I worked for an organization that dealt with special needs children, both in the classroom and a residential setting. Our kids were diagnosed with a host of disabilities ranging from mental health issues to emotional issues. Most had mental health disabilities (autisim, OCD, bi-polar, mental retardation) and they had learning disabilities as well. Some of the medication that the kids had to take was heavy-duty and caused them to be sleepy in class. Our organization lost $2.4 million because of baldy's cuts to the mentally ill. The key is to correctly diagnose a child, correct medication, skilled teachers who know how to educate special needs children and see what the overall cost nationally is concerning special education.

And I agree with your post, MainStreet. This governor does NOT know how to govern Maine properly. Instead of cutting the cost of his own government, he would rather cut needed educational programs to Maine's needy children.

sassykat, see deerhntr's 8:50 post...

PeterTaber, it is obvious that you are not educated, but ignorant!! And ignorance is not always bliss!

At what point do we believe that the public schools are the best placement for children who have serious emotional, physical, or psychological needs? that isn't what they were designed for. Maybe kids with severe disabilities would be MUCH BETTER SERVED in settings that can actually meet their needs rather than dumping them in the public schools.

Nothwoods_Maine,

You hit the nail on the head! Amen.

It's about time this gets looked into. There are kids that truly need this service and it should be given to them. Hopefully when this gets looked into further those kids that need the extra service will get the full benefits of the extra help. The state is looking into this to stop the misuse of these services. I know of kids that are just too lazy to do anything so they get to go to special ed. One of the kids I know would crap in his pants because he doesn't want to stop playing video games or anything else he is doing. There are ed techs that go to classes and do the kids work for them in High School! There is nothing wrong with the kids, they just don't want to do any school work and we have to pay for it. This needs to stop! They need to send people around to check what kids really need the services. I'm willing to bet at least a third of them don't need it.

Just think damama when this students that are lazy and etc. go into our work force. You had better get another job to pay the bills

They should do a poll on how many of the kids in special education get a job after high school and stick to it. The ones that don't need the special ed are too lazy to actually get a job and keep it. They get everything done for them while they're growing up so they know someone will tote them along later.

People need to do some research on what special education is. It's not all about book learning for these children. It's about helping them become the best person that they can be. Granted every child is different and will progress differently because of the services/supports provided by the school districts and these childrens families. My son has received self-contained special education services since he started kindergarten. We have yearly meetings that strictly outline all of his goals for the school year in an IEP (Individualized Education Plan) and he is graded based on his progress on these goals. Any services or supports he needs are written into an IEP and that needs to be followed by the teachers & staff. The goals aren't all about 8 + 8, they are about learning life skills that will help him navigate thru life. Of course the expectation isn't there for him to become a college graduate as this wouldn't be a helpful or realistic goal for him. Being realistic for my son is the hope of one day maybe holding down some type of job and maybe getting his own apartment with supports so he can live his own life to the best of his ability. His disabilities don't cause us to stop having expectations & dreams for him. It's just different expectations & dreams from parents who have a typical child.

Special education laws are federally mandated they state in a nutshell: ( there are also several amendments dealing with younger children and services for themselves and their families)

1. That each child with disabilities is guaranteed a Free and Appropriate education from ages 5-21

2. Special Education and related services must be provided by the public agency at NO COST to the parents

3. Appropriate education is defined as being regular & special education and related services designed to meet that individual childs needs.

4. an IEP (Individualized Education Plan) must be created for each child outlining their specific needs backed up by their need for these services.

5. To the maximum extent the school can provide, these children must be educated in an LRE (least restrictive environment) possible for that child. Which makes the determination if the child needs a self- contained class room or can access these services on an as needed basis.

6. Parents have the right to be involved & need to consent to any services. They also can appeal any decision made by the school

As to some of the statements made above:

# of Ed techs in a school department can vary from school to school.. some children have the need of a constant One on One to help them get thru their day. The schools have to follow this and provide that one on one ed tech to that one specific child as outlined in that childs IEP which would probably account for higher #'s of ed techs in some schools.

discussions about children with behavioral problems in special ed classes - many children with learning disabilities have behavioral problems. My son for instance many would not suspect of being in need of special education services if you just glanced at him sitting in a classroom looking at a book or standing outside waiting for the bus. He in fact has a rare chromosome disorder that causes him global issues from mental retardation to physical limitation. Frustration & pressure can often present as behavior problems for these children. So you can't always judge a book by its cover!!!!

discussions about children being allowed to do what they want when they want - Any parent of a special needs child that is allowing this to happen with their children need to get a smack right up side the head. Get involved with your childs education. Voice your concerns and not just to the teacher pick up the phone and find out who your districts specials services director is and go straight to them with your concerns and get them fixed asap! We've had to do this ourselves.

I do tend to agree with jimbeale BUT I think the determination that a child is no longer benefiting from their education should be made by the parents & their special education adviser. This is not a determination that should be made at a state level based on a general outline that someone thought up to save money.

I for one think my son benefits from his education not only from a "book learning" stand point but in many other ways. He gets out everyday, feels like he is part of something, participates in activities with his peers, learns to interact with others outside of his home, gets services that he wouldn't get otherwise and yes he does school work that is tailored to his own needs. He is eligible to make honor roll and I'm proud to say that he has accomplished this at least twice a year throughout his middle school experience. No he isn't held to the same academic standards as the typical kids but he still has to pull in all A's & B's for his adapted program! Education is a word that means different things for these children as opposed to what you would typically think of for a typical child.

My husband and I will fight tooth and nail to get the services that my son needs. We refuse to just stick him somewhere and hide him from society because a few have issues with $$ spent giving him a shot at an adapted education or for supportive services he will need in his adult years. We didn't plan on having a special child and he damned sure didn't raise his hand and volunteer to be different so he shouldn't be penalized for that! We won't stand for services being cut because someone says its to expensive. I'll probably get blasted by those who think we feel entitled to free services just because our son is a special needs child. That is not the case at all. We have bent over backwards and gone without a lot over the years because our sons needs come 100% first. I can't even put a $$ figure on the amount of money we've spent on items needed in our home, special foods on the grocery list, special diet supplements, countless hours & gallons of gas going back and forth to doctors/specialists & sitting in hospitals while our son was an inpatient, hours and $ lost from missed work, I could go on and on but I won't our life is so very different from those with typical children but we've accepted this and do our best as parents to give our son the life he has just like any other parent does. Its just a different reality for us.

I think Gendron will have her hands full with this one as many won't just nod their heads and accept this. Stop picking on those that truly have a need and start picking on those that bleed state/federal programs dry because they are just to lazy to get off their butts and become productive members of society (I'm not picking on people who REALLY have a need for state assistance) . The amount of $$$'s saved from these people alone would solve a lot of problems this state is having financially. It's not rocket science people. Start looking at the people that have screwed up their own lives by their own CHOICES, those are the people that I have a beef with when they are on state/federal programs that they really shouldn't be!!

I am the parent of a young son with Asperger's Syndrome and an older step-son with Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD), both Autism Spectrum Disorders. I am also a Special Education teacher. Some of the previous comments are right on, we have too many kids that are being sent to school by parents that have not been involved or invested in their children's education, expecting the state-run schools to teach them all they need to know, and in some cases even to "fix" their child. Parents expect the teachers to not only educate kids in content areas, but also teach them how to behave, feed them a decent meal or two, transport them, and provide occupational/speech and language/behavioral therapy, all within a 7 hour day, all with NO EFFORT FROM THE PARENT. Remember, I am the parent of 2 significantly needy kids myself so I'm not a parent-blamer. I know that parenting a "normal" kid is tiring enough, and that parenting a special needs kid is downright exhausting. I like to think that most parents do the best they can. Further, most organic disorders are absolutely not the fault of the parent. However, every parent must acknowledge their own role in not only advocating for their child, but also for providing an environment at home that provides some support to the child's intellectual and psychological growth. I have one student with an "emotional disability" who goes home from school and listens to death metal and watches slasher flicks with his mom. And guess who will get blamed if/when he does have an significant behavioral incident at school? Certainly not Mom! The Baldacci Administration and the legislature does need to take a look at how children qualify for SpEd services, but one of the things that needs consideration is the Due Process process. Families should not only have the right to question whether their children are being suitably educated, but should also have to be part of the process, thus willing to demonstrate how they themselves are complying with certain parental expectations. We've foolishly and unfortunately have put the onus on a child's total education and development on the schools while letting the parents entirely off the hook. That needs to change. Parenting is important and it's time we stopped looking to the schools to be the parens patriae.

OOPs cut off the end....

I'm afraid that if they do this there will be kids who truly need services that will fall thru the cracks. When the state starts generalizing special education services there are bound to be those that will pay the price if its not done correctly. They are looking at this from the $$ standpoint and need to step back and truly look at the problem areas and go from there. Parents of children who receive special education services really need to step back and be sure that everything being placed in the IEP is truly necessary for the child and don't be afraid to ask "does my child really need this & why?" An example, the school offered a one-on-one for my childs bus ride (morning & night) because they could put one in the IEP since our son had some behavior issues during the bus rides. My husband and I refused. We talked to the bus driver and worked things out and have never had a problem with our son riding the bus on his own since he was in kindergarten. Problem simply solved & dollars weren't needlessly paid out for another one-on-one. Question any diagnosis given by a specialist. Our son was evaluated by a child psychologist and we received a multi-page report with more "mental" issues with our child that we even knew existed. Her solution = ritalin and more support services at school. We refused ritalin and more support services at school..he just plain didn't need them he was doing great and progressing with school. Question the teachers.. example.. teacher stated our child was a huge problem and was burning out his ed tech, he just wasn't working out as a result she gave up and let him go and get away with crap.. we stepped in, set up an appointment with the districts special services director. To make a long story short we got him out of that classroom and in with another teacher who took the time and was interested in making his school experience a good one, services and ed tech times were reduced and have never needed to be ramped back up even when he transitioned to middle school. Parents take the time to pay attention, ask questions, advocate for your child. Don't be afraid to fight for the services they NEED and don't be afraid to refuse the ones they don't! It goes both ways I guess. The state should set up a panel with parents of special needs kids so they can get our perspective on things as well!!!

After reading the comments, I have to say that although some may seem to come across as not understanding, there are points that are valid. First off, special needs children are just that, in need of a specialized way to deal with and to teach them. Of course not all of these children will ever be able to attend or even have the apptitude to go further,say to college. But, if dealt with properly, they can and do become productive people in the community. Many of these children have an understanding they are different than the other kids and depending on their age, they don't understand why. We like to think every child out there is understanding and kind but they can be pretty hard on kids who are different. One thing to consider which is hardly even looked at is the possibility of TBI. Kids bang their heads and because nothing shows in most tests taken, they are treated as having behavioral issues or other issues entirely different. The child has no clue what's wrong with him/her and just wants to be left alone because they can't figure out why they can't do things easy or like other kids. I would like to see more of this looked into.

The school systems aren't designed to deal with children who need one on one attention. Special needs classes should be mandated to be able to do just that. Also, I feel that each child who has a disorder or need should be diagnosed as such and not be put in one of these classes because of behavioral issues not pertaining to an illness. Some have mentioned parents. I have witnessed instances where parents couldn't do enough for their children supporting them and the schools at every step and there were also quite a few who couldn't get their child out of their hair fast enough. The ones who may have been less needy maybe could have used more parental supervision and guidance than anything else.

I applaud those parents who stand by their children and do everything they can to provide the best education and services they can obtain. The children who may never be college material, can be productive and happy in life....which is really the main thing.....usually are more conscientious and take more pride in what they can achieve than those of us who have no issues.

Not calling out mainehorsenut on this one at all..but from a parents perspective that isn't employed as a teacher in any way shape or form.....

In my families experiences, the majority of the problems with our son haven't been from lack of parental involvement in his education or support at home. It has been with his teachers & ed techs. They were all to happy to write him off as being to much of a problem child in elementary school. The day I walked into the classroom and saw that my son had been removed to another room ALONE for hours because the teacher just didn't want to deal with him anymore ticked me off. My husband got on the phone asap and met with the special services director. The problem was proven not to be with our son but with the methods the teacher was using (she was new that year but was the type you couldn't talk to..she had all the answers) and her utter lack of understanding that she wasn't dealing with our son properly. He was removed from that classroom at our request and placed with a different teacher, all contact with the previous teacher/ed techs was cut off completely. We went from receiving endless complaints about our son to getting praises for how well our son was doing, how well behaved and polite he was! Quite a change so some of the blame does lay with the teachers. I agree some parents don't do enough and should be called on the carpet.. but would this be an attainable goal? With all do respect there are parents out there with typical kids who just don't care either.

Like Gendron really needs McKinsey to tell her that teachers are using special ed as a dumping ground for the little urchins they are just too lazy to deal with.

heres how to save money and not mess with the special needs kids...... stop welfare increases.. havea set amount no matter how many kids these people have.. how about having them fixed after a set amoungt? thought TANF was only 5 years anyways

Sandy, I was a parent of special needs kids BEFORE I was a SpEd teacher. I was also a child advocate working as a case manager for children with special needs, so I have seen the issue from a variety of perspectives. Yes, there are teachers and techs who want to get paid but not earn their paychecks. You get that in any field. And there are teachers who do not know how to manage the behavior of more challenged kids in their classrooms. Before you get too heavy on educators, though, I suggest you work as a teacher having to wrangle 20 3rd graders and get them to sit long enough to teach them anything, let alone try to manage the added needs of 2, 3, 10 special needs kids under those circumstances. Teaching is less about actually educating kids than herding cats! In an ideal world, we would have enough time and resources to address the specific needs of each child on an individual basis. Institutionalized education is simply not set up to be able to do that. The best we can do is to try to address the big barriers to education.

Addressing the child's needs is possible, some schools are better at it than others, for sure. That success can be attributed mostly to the culture and dedication to educating ALL children that the district embraces. Districts in which all children are expected to be successful build cultures in educators partner well with families, where confrontation is replaced with collaboration, where the needs of the kid are identified and addressed, not because it's a federal or state mandate but because the staff and teachers want their students to do well. Those districts are relatively rare, however, because superintendents and DSS's fear the paradigm shift. However, in order to meet these challenges, we have to get past the idea that teachers must teach what students need to know and move to the idea that students must be learners of what they need to know. That involves removing barriers to learning. Educators then become facilitators of the learning process and students become the learners they are already naturally good at being.

Philosophically, I personally endorse the use of Collaborative Problem Solving (Ross Greene) whenever possible, to get the kid's perspective on why they behave the way they do and what they need to be successful. You'd be surprised what kids come up for with for solutions when you ask them. I can tell you it's NEVER "I need another Ed Tech" nor is it "I need more frequent consultation with a school psychologist." It's usually something like, "I wish my parents would listen to me and stop hollering" or "I'm afraid of being embarrassed." Some parents are fantastic advocates, reality-based and practical like yourself. Others see the schools as the enemy, which is a terrible shame because that attitude prevents a good child-centered partnership from happening.

It is obvious that Susan Gendron has never set foot in a special education setting. In fact, I wonder if she has ever set foot in a school. Let's get her out before she screws anything else up.

Not only does Congress underfund education, the State underfunds education. It just looks like they want a reason to fund less.

mainehorsenut.. I in no way meant to offend you if I did I apologize greatly. I was just speaking for our own personal experience. I know there are GREAT teachers out there thats for sure. I myself have respect for teachers in general until they do something to lose that respect. I can't even imagine how hard it is to teach with numerous special needs kids! I know myself I could not do it with typical children let alone a room of special needs ones. My hats off to the teachers that do it and do it well :) For me it all boils down to what can make my child a successful part of society to the best of his abilities and how can my husband and I along with his teachers and other school staff provide the appropriate support system to get him there! I just wish there were more parents & teachers with a different forum than the BDN comments to get these issues to the attention of those who are making the decisions that could affect our childrens futures! We could probably all learn a lot from each other if given the opportunity to correspond in a general way besides when we're discussing our childs education plans.

gosh I need to learn to proofread lol.. meant I was just speaking FROM our own personal experience.

mainehorsenut, no truer words spoken, collaborative problem solving. SandyL, you are my kind of parent too.

I have taught special ed for 21 years. Twenty-one years ago ADHD kids did not qualify under state & federal regs for special ed or 504 services. Autism was unheard of. Today an ADHD diagnosis qualifies a student for services and for some reason we do have an Autism/Asperger epidemic (CDC: 1 in every 100 incidence). These students are served through special ed, and 504 as they should be.

"The number of students identified with emotional disabilities in Androscoggin County is four times that of Franklin County, and Penobscot County has three times more cases of students with autism than in Lincoln County." (quoted from above)

In dealing with student transfers at the highschool level, I have rarely seen an example of "over identified" for services. I find that other districts do a good job of distinguishing who is and is not eligible for services. Re-testing has always shown the same results re eligibility and the same issues. I think that Gendron is speaking more wishfully than knowledgeably in assuming it's a result of inconsistent and poor practice. The real question is what is causing the increase in autism cases, and the emotional disturbance. "What is in the water?"

The state special education and 504 student population is not an aggregate collection of numbers that follow a national statistical model, as Gendron would like to think. These are students with individual disabilities, requiring a range of support.

Special Education and 504 employ the bulk of Ed Techs. The number of Ed Techs employed increased dramatically when No Child Left Behind became law. The standards were raised and credits needed for graduation were raised. Schools became fearful of being labeled as "failing schools". Ed Techs were hired to provide the additional support to Special Ed and 504 students to help them meet the new standards. Whereas a school mave have employed two Ed Techs in a highschool of 400 21 years ago, the number of Ed Techs may have since jumped to ten in a highschool. At $13,000- $15,000 per Ed Tech, that is a sizeable amount of money. Repeat this at the middle school and elmentary levels across the state and it is notable.

It would be foolhardy to cut Ed Techs because they provide a real service.

Gendron's department could save money still. They could cut the PAAP, and the requirement that every student in the highschool take the PSAT. The highschool laptop program could be eliminated for so many millions. Highschools had previously found solutions to computer access before Gendron's nifty plan was ever implemented.

The requirement for a centralized & computerized record keeping for spec ed and regular ed should be eliminated (and/or postponned until we have a better economy). It is costly and is not efficient. The time it takes to master the "system" is wasted yearly as the "system" is changed yearly. It sounds good on paper, in practice it is wasteful of teaching resources and time. Augusta develops its special ed forms. Once developed, they should not change without a real need - costly.

If higher standards are the goal then they have to be paid for. Demanding higher standards while cutting the supports needed to achieve those standards is ludicrous. But worse than this is setting unrealistic standards and goals, they can never be met.

....fuloughs + higher standards????......another contradiction?

It saddens me to read the comments and read the attacks of one diagnosis over another. To suggest that ADHD is the parent’s lack of parenting, and that autism is a more worthy recipient for support in a classroom is the type of ignorant competition for services that Gendron is encouraging. If the child needs assistance due to a learning disorder (no matter what its diagnosis is) the bottom line is that the child NEEDS HELP. She must ask herself as she makes these decisions, who can meet the MLR’s with assistance in the classroom, and what can be done to help others without holding back the rest of the class. If children with sever disabilities are to remain in the public education system it is going to cost more to meet their needs, but teachers are paid less than medical therapists which might be the only other way to help severely disabled children learn to their fullest potential. They are ALL protected by Federal Law equally. Gendron needs to look at other avenues to help with cost. Like allowing the schools that wish to lengthen the school day by half of an hour, to shorten the days required each year, to do so. This would save a lot more money than denying any child assistance to learn.

Gendron might also want to look at what the state is asking each educational personal to do under the umbrella of education. Is it possible for the teachers to cover the required MLR’s for each student if the majority of students that need additional help outside of the classroom must now remain in the room, just to save a dollar? She must ask herself, “Will the quality of education improve in the class room, and will the teachers be able to cover all the required points under her newly proposed guidelines?”

I do not mean to imply that any system within the education is beyond improvement, but the last time Susan Gendron overhauled anything it was a disaster, and the state is still trying to figure out the reconsolidation of the school administration law that has yet to prove any financial gain for the state.