Joliet Township High School Board wants to do what Plainfield did, and now it looks like they are moving closer toward their goal by moving its school buses.
School board President Chet June said by moving the school buses to another facility, the district will have a building it could rehab to bring back its special education students.
At a previous meeting, board members mentioned that Plainfield School District brought back special education students from out-of-district facilities to save money and asked that the administration look into the issue.
In the 2009-10 school year, there were 132 special education JTHS students placed in facilities outside of the district compared to 1,045 students who received services within the district. There were 38 students placed outside the district for behavioral issues; 49 for social/emotional and mental health disorders and 27 for severe cognitive.
So what do you think? Good idea or bad idea? Any concerns?
Here's the story on their plans to buy a warehouse to house their buses.
Check out
Herald-News
Catherine Ann Velasco has covered education and children and family issues for The Herald-News since 1997. She keeps an eye on schools in Will and Grundy counties. Her best stories always come from readers’ tips or public comment during a board meeting. So if there’s some good news or bad news at your school – she’d like to know. Join the conversation about the twists and turns and surprises that pop up on her beat. And, find some extra news that she just can’t wait to tell you.
There's more to bringing back special ed students than just providing space. Many considerations must be taken into account including the specific, individual needs of each student as indicated on their IEP (Individual Education Plan) and the appropriateness of the facility. I am sure that Mr. June, being a lawyer, has familiarized himself with the intricacies of IDEA and the Illinois School Code. Also to be taken into consideration is the fact that mixing students with diverse disabilities is not in the best interest of the students: Students with severe behavioral issues do not belong with students with severe cognitive impairment.
Change JTHS boundaries! many students living less than 1 mile from JT West are now bussed to JT central. these students are within walking distance of West but are mandated to be bussed to Central. School boundaries were changed to create diversity in the 1970s. I believe bussing children for this reason was recently declared illegal by the supreme court. So why are we still doing it in Joliet? Elimination of these bus routes would save taxpayers much money and also be better for the students. I think there is more behind this issue. What does anyone else know?
It is my understanding that money earmarked for transportation cannot be folded back into the general fund. If you eliminate that bussing, the money is gone too. Besides, the bussing of these special needs students is the least of the cost involved in their education.