Taunton Public Schools Receives Positive Report from DESE on Special Education Equity Initiatives and Indicators

TAUNTON – Superintendent John Cabral and Special Education Coordinator Amy Moynihan are pleased to announce that the Taunton Public Schools has received a report from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education that showed positive results in the district’s initiatives and indicators relating to special education equity.

The report outlined five initiatives and indicators, and in none of these areas were the Taunton Public Schools flagged as having inequities or needing improvement. 

The report, which was received Thursday, Oct. 15, is part of DESE’s priority to increase educational access and equity for the state’s most marginalized students, especially students with disabilities. This priority necessitates that inequities are identified in special education and how local districts can respond to them. 

The five areas in the report include:

Indicators 4A and 4B, required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), measure whether students with IEPs from certain racial and ethnic groups are suspended or expelled more than students with IEPs statewide. Taunton Public Schools was listed as “Not Identified” in these categories in their report.

Indicators 9 and 10, also required by IDEA, measure whether students from certain racial and ethnic groups are disproportionately receiving special education services, both in general and in specific disability categories, because they were inappropriately determined eligible for special education services. Taunton Public Schools was listed as “Not Flagged” in these categories in their report.

Significant Disproportionality, also required by IDEA, measures whether students from certain racial and ethnic groups are disproportionately receiving special education services in specific disability categories, whether they are disproportionately placed in certain settings, and whether they are disproportionately receiving certain kinds of disciplinary removals. Taunton Public Schools was listed as “Not Identified or At-Risk” in this category in their report.

“It is terrific news that the district was not identified or flagged in any of these categories in DESE’s report, and it is a true testament to the teachers and administrators within our schools, specifically the dedicated and passionate special education staff members including Coordinator Moynihan and former Director of Special Education and the Special Education Department Judy Mulrooney,” Superintendent Cabral said. “However, this does not mean that we will remain stagnant in our approach to special education. We will continue to do whatever we can to offer every student in the Taunton Public Schools the highest level of access to education and equity across all grade levels.”

For more information on the report and the initiatives and indicators measured by DESE, click here.

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