Minutes
Quincy School Committee
Special Education Subcommittee Meeting
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
A meeting of the Special Education Subcommittee was held on Wednesday, October 21, 2015 at 6:00
pm at the Coddington Building. Present were Mr. Noel DiBona and Mrs. Anne Mahoney, Chair. Also
attending were Superintendent Richard DeCristofaro, Mrs. Catherine Carey, Mrs. Donna Cunningham,
Mrs. Mary Fredrickson, Mr. Richard Kelly, Deputy Superintendent Kevin Mulvey, Mrs. Maura Papile,
Ms. Madeline Roy, Ms. Judy Todd; Quincy Parent Advisory Council to Special Education Board
Members Ms. Beck, Ms. Campbell, Ms. Hurld, Ms. Nabstedt; and Ms. Laura Owens, Clerk.
Mrs. Mahoney called the meeting to order at 6:10 pm. For the 2015-2016 Program Improvement
Plan, Ms. Todd reviewed that the mission of the Special Education Department is to provide specially
designed instruction and/or related services. The program builds on individual strengths and abilities,
meeting the diverse academic, emotional, and social needs of all students. Professional development
for this year will include Landmark Writing for Language Development classes; Looney Productions
will provide Professional Development and Consulting for the Math Reteach Team; and the
Elementary Resource Room teachers will be trained on using the MAP Assessment for Grade 3.
2014-2015 Goal reflection: (1) 1% increase in average percent correct on the Mathematics MCAS for
Grades 7 and 8 for students with disabilities: Grade 7 increased 1% and Grade 8 increased 3%. All
grades show increases in average percent correct and Grade 8 students showed 15 point gain in
student growth. Moving forward, the iReady program will be implemented for students with
disabilities. (2) For Grade 3 Resource Room students, schools across the city met the goal, with
seven schools exceeding the goal of increasing word reading to 30 words. Ms. Isola asked to see the
scores with the schools identified. Mrs. Mahoney agreed, it is hard to analyze without specifics about
the number of students. Ms. Todd will follow up with a revised chart. For the ELA Reading Anchor
standard, Grades 5, 8, and 10 made gains. (3) The Special Education Department goal was the
focused on the Coordinated Program Review: monitoring all IEPs to ensure they contain language
about bullying with goals as appropriate and developing a checklist for students identified with
autism to be used in IEPs.
For 2015-2016, the Special Education department goals will be a continuation of the Mathematics
goal of 1% increase in average percent correct (Middle School Teachers); assisting in the
implementation, proctoring, and analysis of the Grade 3 pilot of the Measures of Academic Progress
(MAP) (Elementary Resource Room Teachers); and facilitating the implementation of the Aspen
Special Education module. Other team goals include: The Occupational Therapy Team will develop
and implement new treatment activities for visual tracking based on the results of their DDMs. (2)
The Speech and Language Team will work individually and collectively as a team to modify a data collection form to track the number and type of prompts needed for students to execute multi-step
directions related to therapy activities. This form will be utilized as a pre- and post-test to monitor
student progress. (3) The Language Development Team will implement the Landmark Writing
method throughout all areas of curriculum. (4) The GOALS Team will participate in professional
development related to online learning opportunities, especially the Accellus program. Students will
be taught how to make healthy choices regarding nutrition as well as the impact of substance abuse
on teen development. (5) The CARES Team will design and implement consistent data collection
forms by June 2016.
Ms. Todd also shared the Special Education Program Opportunities and Initiatives with Community
Partners: South Shore YMCA: CARES program swimming; Sports Skills for middle school CARES
students; Personal training for GOALS and PASS; Pre-Kindergarten Young Athletes and CHAMPPS for
UMass Boston; and horseback riding and ice skating for the STARS program. Ms. Isola asked for and
received confirmation that these activities are integrated during the school day. Ms. Hurld asked if
these programs are for in-district Special Education students and they are currently not available for
out-of-district students.
Demographics: At elementary schools, all but Montclair are showing increases in needs for services
for elementary school students. Middle schools are not showing much change, but Quincy High
School has had a large increase in Special Education population. Autism trends show increases,
especially at the elementary levels.
Mrs. Mahoney asked what caused the increase at Quincy High School. One factor may be the
enrollment shift between NQHS and QHS in 2010 and 2011. Ms. Todd said that additional staff
member was hired for Quincy High School and some may be new students to Quincy Public Schools at
the high school level.
Mrs. Mahoney asked for more information about IReady. Ms. Todd said this is a progress-monitoring
tool that ties in with the Math Reteach team’s work and features strategies for reteaching, sample
lessons, and an at-home component. Ms. Roy said it was piloted last year at Broad Meadows and has
been implemented for mainstreamed Special Education Math students at all middle schools.
Mrs. Mahoney asked about Mathematics Professional Development. Ms. Todd said that the Math
Reteach team meets 5-6 times per year and will focus this year on Geometry and Equations, teaching
these concepts using manipulatives. Mrs. Mahoney asked if the consultants will be in the classroom
and they will do both pull out professional development with the teachers and hands on in the
classroom. Ms. Todd said the inclusion model has really developed a strong partnership between the
special and regular education teachers.
Mrs. Mahoney made a motion to approve the Special Education Program Improvement Plan,
seconded by Mr. DiBona. On a voice vote, the ayes have it.
Ms. Todd introduced the Rights and Responsibilities presentation, an annual mandate under Special
Education law. The goal of the presentation is to provide information so that educators will
understand their role regarding Special Education; collaboration between family and school
personnel will be enhanced; and parents and school personnel will participate in special education
matters as knowledgeable partners.
Students are eligible for Special Education when all three of the following are true: the student has
one or more disability, the student is not making effective progress in school as a result of the
disability; and the student requires specialized instruction in order to make effective progress.
Special education is specially-designed instruction to meet the unique needs of an eligible student
and/or related services necessary to access and make progress in the general curriculum.
There is a 45-day timeline: parents consent to evaluation, then there are 30 school working days to
evaluate. The team meeting to determine eligibility should occur no later than 15 school working
days after the evaluation. If a student is eligible, development of IEP and determination of placement
occur at that Team meeting. Services commence upon parental consent.
There are six principles of Special Education: (1) Parent and Student Participation; (2) Free and
Appropriate Public Education; (3) Appropriate Evaluation; (4) Individualized Education Program; (5)
Least Restrictive Environment; and (6) Procedural Safeguards. A student IEP is a legal document and
is meant to be a written explanation of how the disability effects the student’s ability to learn and to
demonstrate his or her learning; an identification of specific, measurable goals which can be reached
in a year’s time.
Ms. Beck presented on behalf of the Quincy Parent Advisory Council to Special Education (QPAC).
QPAC’s goals for this year are to build membership; using Facebook as a means to communicate with
over 300 followers. Events for this year will include the Gingerbread House event on December 4, in
partnership with Quincy High School Culinary and Fratelli’s and BJs Warehouse. Ms. Beck would like
to schedule the Enchanted Village program with the CARES program and will work with Ms. Todd to
secure the date. Quincy Public Schools will provide bus transportation. Ms. Beck would like to
expand the Lego Workshops to more classes this year (two last year). A Sensory night will be
scheduled in the spring. Ms. Beck is working on a grant application for Eastern Bank to support this
and other programs.
Ms. Beck would like to add an event with Wahlburgers, either a cookout here in Quincy or a kids in
the kitchen event at their restaurant. Ms. Beck said that in thinking about how to make parents and
children part of the Special Education program and process, she would like to have an art contest to
design a QPAC logo. The winning logo could then be printed on white t-shirts which could then be
tie-dyed at a spring event. The final event would be an art show for Special Education students across Quincy Public Schools, including out of district students. These events all have a positive focus
and would allow for showcasing of student talents. Ms. Beck wants to assist parents and families
with communication and working together as a team. Building positive relationships with both
parents and children supports the Special Education process.
Ms. Hurld asked about the QPAC website. Ms. Beck said that the website was taken down last year
and that the Facebook page is serving as a means of contact right now. Ms. Campbell said that
having even a homepage would assist parents in finding basic information about Special Education.
Ms. Hurld said developing a new page could be a Community Service opportunity for high school
students. Dr. DeCristofaro said the IT department can assist with this.
Dr. DeCristoraro thanked Ms. Beck for her efforts in family and classroom connections and
commended her for the time spent preparing for these encounters. QPAC is an important liaison in
explaining the Special Education process to parents.
Ms. Beck asked for assistance in reaching out to school sites/PTOs to continue to monitor Special
Education issues; the Citywide Parents Council mentioned Special Education equity as a focus. Mrs.
Mahoney said this is an opportunity for collaboration between the two parent groups; Ms. Campbell
is the liaison between the parent groups. Mrs. Mahoney thanked Ms. Beck for the progress in
collaborating between School Committee and QPAC. At the same time, there are always new parents
frustrated with the process, QPAC is the resource. Ms. Campbell said that Citywide has the same
issues with parent participation, some schools are well-represented, others are not represented at
all. Many times parent frustrations are about messaging, issues are easily solved, more often
perceived inequities are disconnects or missed messages. Mrs. Mahoney said developing the new
QPAC website is an opportunity to bridge the message.
The next Special Education Subcommittee is January 20, 2016.
Mrs. Mahoney made a motion to adjourn at 7:15 pm, seconded by Mr. DiBona. On a voice vote, the
ayes have it.