Status: Closed — this petition is no longer accepting signatures.
Final supporters
We have raised this petition to request the following of
Acton-Boxborough Pupil Services:
1) make no cut to the hours at the Carol Huebner
Early Childhood Program Acton site for the 2015-2016 school year and beyond.
2) communicate future proposed preschool program changes to families in a clear
and timely fashion.
***
Families with a stake in the Carol
Huebner Early Childhood Program preschool have become aware of significant
change being proposed to the structure at both the Acton and Boxborough sites
starting next fall. While we appreciate the Early Childhood Coordinator’s
efforts to hold forums last winter to solicit parent and guardian input
regarding regionalization, most seem unaware that these changes are occurring.
The changes for the Acton site include:
a 20-minute daily reduction in the full-day program hours (This totals 80 fewer minutes per week for full-day students and 100 fewer minutes per week for those who also attend the ABA-based classroom all day on Fridays.)
a 10-minute daily reduction in the half-day program hours (This totals 40 fewer minutes per week for the a.m. and p.m. programs.)
None of the students at the Acton site benefit from the proposed reduction in instruction time. The most vulnerable population, those with needs meriting full-day, full-week services, will be hurt the most by this shift. Students who are pulled out of the integrated classrooms for speech, physical, occupational, behavioral therapy or a combination thereof will have even less time among typically developing peer models in the least restrictive environment available. There are already too few minutes in the instructional day for all half- and full-time students to get through all the skills they need to learn, practice, and generalize. Early, intensive intervention is the most effective for students' long-term outcomes and the most cost effective for the school district. This change takes neither into consideration.
Furthermore, it has been brought to our attention that some special education students have Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) indicating they will receive services in excess of the proposed hours beyond the first day of school next year. This raises additional questions:
How will the district meet IEP obligations for students given these proposed reductions?
How will the individual IEP teams determine if the reduced hours as proposed are sufficient to meet student needs?
The Acton-Boxborough Regional School Committee exhaustively researches and discusses altering the start times for all other schools in the district, but the preschool start time and hours are summarily slated to be changed. There is concern that these and other proposed changes relevant to regionalization were not made transparent to families. Open, direct, and timely communication about proposed changes to the preschool program should be extended to families as a courtesy to aid with planning around childcare and financial considerations.
We have subsequently raised this petition to request Acton-Boxborough Pupil Services
1) make no cut to the hours at the Carol Huebner Early Childhood Program Acton site for the 2015-2016 school year and beyond.
2) communicate future proposed preschool program changes to families in a clear and timely fashion.
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Updates
December 30, 2014
I have requested a formal meeting with the Pupil Services leadership to present the data collected from this petition. We are currently drafting a written response to the school committee to ensure our concerns regarding these hour reductions are part of the permanent public record.
December 30, 2014
The volume of support for this petition has reached a level that necessitates an immediate review by the school committee members. I am currently finalizing a formal request for a meeting to present these concerns directly to the Pupil Services administration team.
14 Comments
My family lives in Maynard, but I understand the importance of a solid preschool for kids with special needs, as my older daughter, now 9, is on the spectrum. She has come a long way, and we attribute that to her earliest years of Early Intervention and Integrated Preschool. As an aside, Acton has a reputation for being an excellent school system if your child has special needs. Or at least it use to. I'm hearing more and more that the school has more than it can handle, which I suspect is the reason for this proposed change. This is not the solution!
Please do not cut the hours for any of these children. The education our son has received was critical to his successful development and I feel that all Acton children should continue to have the same services and opportunities.
as a mother and considering a choice in the Acton School system, also a teacher in a preschool/toddler program that has been in the Early Education field for many year, I fully support this petition
As stated, the weekly hours are already quite low and reducing it further will be of little help to the children of the early childhood program
I do not agree with the proposal to cut hours and I also believe that any proposed changes in the future should require full disclosure to parents and families.
Do Not Cut Acton Integrated Preschool Hours
Children's needs first!
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Status: Closed — this petition is no longer accepting signatures.
Final supporters
We have raised this petition to request the following of
Acton-Boxborough Pupil Services:
1) make no cut to the hours at the Carol Huebner
Early Childhood Program Acton site for the 2015-2016 school year and beyond.
2) communicate future proposed preschool program changes to families in a clear
and timely fashion.
***
Families with a stake in the Carol
Huebner Early Childhood Program preschool have become aware of significant
change being proposed to the structure at both the Acton and Boxborough sites
starting next fall. While we appreciate the Early Childhood Coordinator’s
efforts to hold forums last winter to solicit parent and guardian input
regarding regionalization, most seem unaware that these changes are occurring.
The changes for the Acton site include:
a 20-minute daily reduction in the full-day program hours (This totals 80 fewer minutes per week for full-day students and 100 fewer minutes per week for those who also attend the ABA-based classroom all day on Fridays.)
a 10-minute daily reduction in the half-day program hours (This totals 40 fewer minutes per week for the a.m. and p.m. programs.)
None of the students at the Acton site benefit from the proposed reduction in instruction time. The most vulnerable population, those with needs meriting full-day, full-week services, will be hurt the most by this shift. Students who are pulled out of the integrated classrooms for speech, physical, occupational, behavioral therapy or a combination thereof will have even less time among typically developing peer models in the least restrictive environment available. There are already too few minutes in the instructional day for all half- and full-time students to get through all the skills they need to learn, practice, and generalize. Early, intensive intervention is the most effective for students' long-term outcomes and the most cost effective for the school district. This change takes neither into consideration.
Furthermore, it has been brought to our attention that some special education students have Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) indicating they will receive services in excess of the proposed hours beyond the first day of school next year. This raises additional questions:
How will the district meet IEP obligations for students given these proposed reductions?
How will the individual IEP teams determine if the reduced hours as proposed are sufficient to meet student needs?
The Acton-Boxborough Regional School Committee exhaustively researches and discusses altering the start times for all other schools in the district, but the preschool start time and hours are summarily slated to be changed. There is concern that these and other proposed changes relevant to regionalization were not made transparent to families. Open, direct, and timely communication about proposed changes to the preschool program should be extended to families as a courtesy to aid with planning around childcare and financial considerations.
We have subsequently raised this petition to request Acton-Boxborough Pupil Services
1) make no cut to the hours at the Carol Huebner Early Childhood Program Acton site for the 2015-2016 school year and beyond.
2) communicate future proposed preschool program changes to families in a clear and timely fashion.
Updates
December 30, 2014
I have requested a formal meeting with the Pupil Services leadership to present the data collected from this petition. We are currently drafting a written response to the school committee to ensure our concerns regarding these hour reductions are part of the permanent public record.
December 30, 2014
The volume of support for this petition has reached a level that necessitates an immediate review by the school committee members. I am currently finalizing a formal request for a meeting to present these concerns directly to the Pupil Services administration team.
14 Comments
The suggestion of cutting hours is a huge disservice to our children. I for one do not want to see my daughter regress. She has made tremendous progress in the last year due to all of her speech and ABA therapy in preschool. No cuts should be made. For many of us this could be the difference between bridging the gap for our kids so we can communicate and interact with them, and watching them struggle, stuck inside their shell, unable to join our world. Keep sharing this petition. Together we are strong. -Suzan Mason
My family lives in Maynard, but I understand the importance of a solid preschool for kids with special needs, as my older daughter, now 9, is on the spectrum. She has come a long way, and we attribute that to her earliest years of Early Intervention and Integrated Preschool. As an aside, Acton has a reputation for being an excellent school system if your child has special needs. Or at least it use to. I'm hearing more and more that the school has more than it can handle, which I suspect is the reason for this proposed change. This is not the solution!
Please do not cut the hours for any of these children. The education our son has received was critical to his successful development and I feel that all Acton children should continue to have the same services and opportunities.
as a mother and considering a choice in the Acton School system, also a teacher in a preschool/toddler program that has been in the Early Education field for many year, I fully support this petition
As stated, the weekly hours are already quite low and reducing it further will be of little help to the children of the early childhood program
I do not agree with the proposal to cut hours and I also believe that any proposed changes in the future should require full disclosure to parents and families.
Do Not Cut Acton Integrated Preschool Hours
Children's needs first!
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The suggestion of cutting hours is a huge disservice to our children. I for one do not want to see my daughter regress. She has made tremendous progress in the last year due to all of her speech and ABA therapy in preschool. No cuts should be made. For many of us this could be the difference between bridging the gap for our kids so we can communicate and interact with them, and watching them struggle, stuck inside their shell, unable to join our world. Keep sharing this petition. Together we are strong. -Suzan Mason