Major Reorganization of Special Education Services in Wake County
The Wake County Public School System is undergoing significant changes to its approach to supporting students with disabilities. These changes, which the school board has described as long overdue, aim to address longstanding issues that have affected both families and staff.
One of the key components of the reorganization includes increasing staff training, creating more defined roles for employees, improving data analysis, and offering greater support to schools when cases become complex. Families may notice shifts in which school employees are responsible for their children's needs, and staff could report to new individuals within the system.
These changes come three years after a report from an education consulting firm highlighted major problems with staff training, unclear job roles, and communication challenges with parents. Despite the findings, the district did not begin making changes until this year.
The reorganization has already started, with further adjustments planned over the next school year. The district serves approximately 20,000 students with disabilities, but it has struggled with staffing shortages, including around 70 vacant special education teaching positions and 80 vacant instructional assistant positions during the previous school year. Additionally, the district has faced high-profile legal complaints, including a 2023 settlement related to the restraint and seclusion of a child, as well as the assault conviction of a former teacher whose concerns had been raised by parents months before the school system reported the incident to police.
Some cases have led to the district covering tuition costs for families who choose to send their children to private schools. Parents have also reported difficulties in meeting with educators, untrained staff, excessive discipline, and delayed evaluations, among other issues.
Last fall, district officials acknowledged the need for change to reduce complaints, including those filed with state or federal agencies. During the 2023-24 school year, the district failed to meet the required 90-day timeline for providing services to students referred to special education 42% of the time, according to Lisa Allred, the district’s new assistant superintendent for special education services.
Allred, who joined the district last year, is leading efforts to analyze data and identify areas where the district is falling short. She has formed a group that is working with staff from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction to gather insights and improve performance.
Parent Engagement and Communication
Board Member Toshiba Rice noted that interest in these changes is growing among parents, and she can now provide updates and explain how the district plans to help. Other board members, such as Tyler Swanson, a former Enloe High special education teacher, have pushed for more involvement from regular education teachers in individualized education planning and data analysis.
Swanson suggested the addition of a case manager in every school to help reduce teacher workloads, particularly for less-experienced staff. He emphasized that high turnover in special education is partly due to this issue. While Allred supports the case-manager model, she noted that the district currently cannot afford to implement it fully.
Federal Changes and State Legislation
The district’s reorganization is taking place against the backdrop of potential federal changes to special education oversight. The Trump administration plans to transfer responsibility for special education to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which could impact how the district operates.
In North Carolina, legislation to remove funding caps for students with disabilities has stalled in the state General Assembly. Meanwhile, the Wake County changes focus on restructuring special education services, including clearer roles for staff and improved training.
Officials plan to update job descriptions later this summer to reflect the new responsibilities, ensuring that all employees understand their nonnegotiable duties. Allred will also meet with principals in September to train them on leading more effective individualized education plan (IEP) meetings.
Addressing Disparities and Discipline
The district is also working to reduce the overrepresentation of Black students in the "emotional disturbance" category, which often leads to higher suspension rates. Nationally, students with disabilities are suspended at higher rates than any other group, and in Wake County, they face suspensions more than three times as often as the average student.
Parents have reported that their children are sometimes sent home without formal suspensions, a practice that disability rights advocates say should not occur. This pattern is part of a larger national trend.
Recommendations from Education Consultants
In 2021, the district contracted with District Management Group, a Boston-based education consulting firm, to evaluate its special education services. In July 2022, the firm identified many of the same issues that the current reorganization aims to solve, including unclear roles, inconsistent staff knowledge, and communication problems.
The firm found that a lack of defined roles and responsibilities created significant challenges in resolving issues. It recommended improving parent engagement, providing clearer online information, enhancing staff training, and formalizing assessment processes.
DMGroup described the district’s problem-solving process as overly informal and ad hoc, with different outcomes depending on the school, issue, and personnel involved. It proposed a simplified five-step process for addressing issues: identifying the problem, investigating it, holding a meeting, making a decision, and monitoring the resolution.
Regular evaluation of recurring problems to prevent future issues was also recommended. These steps are now being considered as part of the ongoing reorganization.