Summer Makeup Sessions Set for Special Ed Students
By ELISSA GOOTMAN (NY TIMES, June 9, 2004)

The New York City Department of Education announced yesterday that it would offer summer makeup sessions to 14,500 special education students who did not get the services they needed during the school year. It is the first time the department has offered such makeup sessions.

The announcement came toward the end of a year that educators and other experts said was marked by unprecedented disarray in the city's special education system, largely resulting from Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's reorganization of the entire school system. About 145,000 students in the city are eligible for special education services.

For months, officials denied there was a problem, but a few months ago, the city's newly appointed acting deputy chancellor for teaching and learning, Carmen Fariña, acknowledged failures to evaluate children and provide necessary services, and said her top priority would be to correct the problem.

The summer services, which are expected to cost up to $8 million, are the department's most significant step so far in fulfilling Ms. Fariña's promise.

Public officials and other experts described the initiative as an important step, but they said it should have been announced earlier in the year and they urged the Department of Education to make a plan for improving services in the next school year.

"How in the world are you going to give the services in six weeks that you didn't give for a whole year to children who have tremendously serious needs and are behind now?" asked Betsy Gotbaum, the city's public advocate, who has been one of the most vocal critics of the special education system this year.

The summer plan also came amid discussions between the Department of Education and plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit that was filed three decades ago, in which a judge found that the city school system had failed to give special education students the services they deserved.

Jill Chaifetz, executive director of Advocates for Children, a nonprofit group involved in the lawsuit, described the summer program as a "productive acknowledgement that a lot of kids didn't get the services they needed throughout the year."

"This issue of providing services during the summer is something that we have been negotiating with the Department of Education for some weeks," she added. "We asked them to do this. They are under no court order to do this, but we are very happy that they have decided to."

Eileen Murphy, a spokeswoman for the Department of Education, played down any pressure from outside groups, saying, "This is a case of us doing something, taking a step that we've never taken before, in an effort to ensure that these children who are entitled to these services receive them."

"We made the determination that we had the resources in place to provide this option to these students."

Some students receive special education services year-round, but officials said this was the first time makeup sessions were offered to those who missed out during the school year.

On Monday, the Department of Education sent letters to the parents of students who had waited at least three months to receive services after being identified as needing them.

Children in the summer services may receive up to two one-hour sessions per week in each specialty they need, the letters said. They said that students who attend summer school may be able to receive special education services at the same location.

Parents were told that officials would try to provide services in convenient locations and would provide MetroCards and taxi fare.

In a telephone interview, Linda Wernikoff, the city's top special education administrator, said a national shortage in occupational, physical and speech therapy specialists was the primary reason that the 14,500 students need makeup sessions.

"These shortages are longstanding issues," she said. "They're not related to the new organization."

Ms. Wernikoff said the department was redoubling its efforts to recruit such specialists - offering more scholarships and loan forgiveness for people who pursue these fields and agree to work in the city schools.

Eva S. Moskowitz, chairwoman of the City Council's Education Committee, applauded the summer program but said she was still concerned for the future.

"What is the plan for September?" she asked. "Are we going to be in the same cycle next year?"