Field School parents appear to be in agreement on a plan for shifting special-education students to Emerson School to alleviate crowding at Field.
Following meetings with, and outcry from, parents, Elmhurst District 205 agreed Tuesday to move only students in 1st and 2nd grades to Emerson beginning with the 2016-2017 school year. Students entering 3rd through 5th grades will remain at Field until they enter middle school.
Field currently has one specialized instructional classroom for students with intellectual disabilities, developmental delays, and autism for kindergartners through 2nd graders, and one for students in 3rd through 5th grade. Students are integrated into the activities of the general student population at Field for at least a portion of the school day as specified in individual education plans.
Parents of both special-education and general-education students crowded the board’s Jan. 12 meeting to express their frustration and anger at the initial decision to send all special-education students to Emerson beginning in the fall.
Not only is the agreement an outcome the parents were looking for, but the district changed the manner in which it was communicating with parents in proposing this solution. Parents of special-education students at Field School were angry that the district initially told them of the space-saving plan via a memo sent home with students. During their Jan. 12 board meeting, district officials apologized for communicating in this fashion.
Superintendent David Moyer said the administration hosted a meeting for the parents of students in the Field instructional program, and then called the parents of students who would be moving this year.
The Field principal also will host an informational meeting for all Field parents to discuss capacity issues and tentative plans to manage space and programming needs.
Moyer noted that the school board had authorized the administration to commit the necessary staffing for the next three years to accommodate the transition. Staffing, Moyer had said, was one of the reasons for the proposal to send students to Emerson.
Space at Field will continue to be an issue, Moyer said. While the school is not technically at its maximum classroom capacity of 460 students, district reports state it exceeds its functional capacity in terms of classroom size and available areas for instructional programming.
While Field parent Shawn Bowen said she was happy with the plan, she also thinks the entire special-education program should’ve been kept as is. And she said she will be watching the transition plan closely to make sure teachers, staff and students are prepared for the change at both schools.
“Field is excellent and has so much experience with this program. I do think changing schools weakens the program,” she said.
Overall, she believes parents are satisfied.
“I do hope that the district does right by the children transferring as well as all the children at Emerson,” she said.
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Carol Morency is a freelance report for Pioneer Press.