CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The state Board of Education approved a report Wednesday following a Department of Education invited review of the special education system in the Berkeley County school system.
The report noted several areas of the non-compliance rooted in what’s the review team termed as poor communication within the Berkeley County central office.
“We found that there was a lack of communication between the special education department and the remaining departments within the central office and this developed over time,” WVDE Office of District and School Advancement Senior Administrator Charlene Coburn told members of the state BOE Wednesday. “This is something that became part of the working culture of the office.”
Coburn said new Berkeley County School Superintendent Dr. Patrick Murphy, who requested the state review after beginning the job last fall, has already started to improve the communication issue.
Other findings of non-compliance included a process that has certain schools offering certain specialized services for special education students. Coburn said that has caused the busing of many special education students out of their home areas as the school population has grown.
“Many students were being bused from their home community to a different community to receive their special education services. That will be an area that they’ll be addressing right away,” Coburn said.
The review team also found that many Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) were not being completed for students. Coburn said in some cases school principals were not attending IEP meetings.
Murphy said his team is already moving forward with addressing some of the findings of the review.
“We’ve actually had individual school team meetings that I found were very productive,” he said.
Murphy applauded the work of Coburn’s team. He told the state Board of Education the team was very positive and constructive.
“I wanted a third party objective eye with a high level of expertise,” Murphy said Wednesday. “I agree with the findings.”
Murphy said part of his plan is to instill certainty in the special education program.
“Through professional development and a training program. Also looking at some of the areas that we need to improve and grow in will be part of the menu as we move forward,” he said.
The review team did commend Berkeley County Schools longstanding Work Exploration program that matches 141 special education students with 158 businesses for work experience.