During today’s School Board Work Session, the Orange County School Board reviewed the Exceptional Student Education program.
The purpose of this work session was to review how OCPS supports ESE students and their ability to meet the highest level of success. The district provides services and support to over 39,000 ESE students at both OCPS and Charter schools. That includes 26,057 students with disabilities and 11,619 gifted students. Board members also had the opportunity to receive clarification on budget questions and how the Florida Education Finance Program and Full-Time Equivalent is calculated for ESE students.
In December 2020, the district conducted an ESE parent feedback survey that collected a total of 3,622 responses. In addition, a district ESE Parent Focus Group was created with the goal to collaborate with the ESE department to provide ongoing feedback.
Program highlights include:
• The Florida Department of Education requires districts to spend 90 percent of the funds generated for ESE students. OCPS spent 164 percent in 2019-20, 157 percent in 2018-19, and 156 percent in 2017-18.
• The OCPS ESE department supports private and charter schools.
• OCPS has met the requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act or the last five years.
Board members were also updated on the following topics:
• The structure of the department
• The demographics of the department
• Communication flow
• FEFP funding and FTE requirements
• Professional development opportunities for staff
• Parent support & training opportunities
View the
PowerPoint presentation from this work session.
Next steps: An Exceptional Student Education audit will be developed and proposed at a future school board meeting.
*Reminder* Work sessions are live-streamed on the
School Board’s YouTube channel and will be accessible from web browsers on computers or mobile devices.