The Pittsburgh Public Schools needs — and plans to — improve discipline and behavior procedures, enrollment, educational placements and state assessment outcomes for its special education students.
Patti Camper, assistant superintendent for students with exceptionalities, briefed the school board Tuesday on a plan that aims to improve educational outcomes and offerings for students with special needs.
PPS reviewed how students with individualized education plans, or IEPs, participate and perform on state assessments.
There’s been “encouraging progress” on participation for English exams over the past three years, but proficiency rates are below state targets and an achievement disparity for students with disabilities remains, Camper said.
Math exams were similar, Camper said — with improved participation but proficiency levels below targets.
For example, PPS data reports that, overall, 14% of students with IEPs in third through eighth grade scored proficient or above on English state exams last school year. That number was 8.4% on math exams last year.
“The data for English and math point us toward the need to strengthen instructional quality, alignment and support for students with disabilities to more effectively impact student learning and outcomes,” Camper said.
PPS plans to strengthen assessments and student support, and align those initiatives across all schools, said Ann McKetta, senior program officer for students with exceptionalities. She cited using professional learning on data and IEP to design intervention and instruction.
The Pittsburgh Public Schools’ level of less than 10-day suspensions among Black students with disabilities has placed the district in “warning status” by the state, Camper said. The state’s Risk Ratio threshold for discipline disproportionality is 2.5. Based on the 2023-24 school year data, PPS ratio was 2.9. Last school year, it was 2.58.
“Black students with disabilities are being removed from instruction at higher rates than their peers, which directly impacts access to learning and connects to the need of stronger, more consistent behavior supports across all schools,” Camper said.
To address that, the district plans to shift from a reactive discipline model to a preventative approach, McKetta said.
Initatives include increasing consistency in implementation and expanding alternatives to suspension, McKetta said. As a result, students would remain in school and get more proactive and consistent expectations.
“This is not about asking people to suspend less, it’s about giving them the tools to respond differently,” McKetta said, referencing deescalation strategies and restorative practices. “The goal is that, in those critical moments, staff have options that keep students within learning environments.”
Schools should include 63% of special education students in general education classes more than 80% of the school day, the state reports. PPS reported 57% of students doing so last school year.
PPS plans to align curriculum, assessment, and student services across departments and schools, McKetta said.
PPS is monitored every three years by the state’s Bureau of Special Education to review the district’s special education practices, Camper said. The district plans to submit the plan to the state in May.