2009-2010 DESE Special Education Mid-Cycle Review Results

DESE COORDINATED PROGRAM REVIEW & MID CYCLE REVIEW

As one part of its accountability system, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) oversees local compliance with special education requirements through the Coordinated Program Review (CPR).  Every six years our school districts must undergo the full program review and at the three year mid point between full reviews DESE’s Program Quality Assurances (PQA) department also completes a mid cycle review or check-in.

By state law, PQA has the responsibility to ensure that all corrective action required as the result of findings made during the Department's Public School Coordinated Program Reviews (CPRs) is fully implemented by public education agencies and that it is effective in remedying noncompliance with state and federal special education requirements.

PQA staff carry out this responsibility during the mid cycle by:

• Onsite monitoring of the effectiveness of corrective action required as the result of CPRs (monitoring methods include, as appropriate, staff and parent interviews, documentation and data reviews, student record review, and observations).
• Onsite monitoring of the implementation of new state or federal special education requirements enacted since the last CPR; and
• Onsite monitoring of the implementation of corrective action required by the Department as a result of patterns of noncompliance identified through the Department's complaint management procedures.

The finding of our last full coordinated program review (CPR) for Amherst, Pelham and Amherst Public Schools can be found at http://www.doe.mass.edu/pqa/review/cpr/default.html.