But statewide, MDE’s “delayed action” to address the federal government’s findings affects local school districts’ ability to provide services to students, said Abby Cypher, executive director of the Michigan Association of Administrators of Special Education.
When and if local school districts are required to provide extra services, they’ll likely do so without the roughly $5.6 billion in pandemic relief funds that had been sent to Michigan schools but is now expiring, Cypher noted.
It’s “evident” that districts wanted to “do it right” during the pandemic, and some may have despite flawed guidance by the state, she said.
Jason Mellema, superintendent of Ingham Intermediate School District told Bridge that he had read about the federal government’s findings but did not know the level of detail until a Bridge reporter provided the notice document.
Mellema said he hopes a remedy is “established sooner rather than later.”
“We’ve got to make sure that if there’s been an issue, if things haven’t been applied the right way, we need to understand what the standard is and then work toward that,” he said. “I think it would be unwise of school districts to make guesses right now because that could actually make it to where we’re worse.”
Bob Lusk, a lawyer with experience representing both school districts and parents of students in special education programs, told Bridge that if MDE admits to wrongdoing, the state could be vulnerable to a class action lawsuit.
If and when the state agrees to a settlement, he predicted some school districts will have to consider additional parent requests for compensatory education. But as more time passes, Lusk anticipates fewer parents will be focused on the issue, while some students will have graduated or moved to other schools.
“I think the longer it takes to resolve, probably the fewer cases there are going to be of people requesting services,” he said.
