The Berkshire Eagle
Monday, December 13, 1999

MCAS makes no provision for students in special ed
By Maryann Carnes
Special to The Eagle

Nearly 22 percent of the city's future high school seniors may not graduate under the present
MCAS exam requirements, according to Michael Meyer, director of special education for the
Pittsfield Public Schools. What remains unclear, he said, is how local educators will provide a lifeline to the numbers of special-needs students who will likely fall through the cracks of the strict Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System.

Passing the exams will be a requirement for graduation come 2003, but that could be an
impossible goal for scores of special- needs children, Meyer predicted.

"I really don't agree with this and I'm having a hard time dealing with it. Most of our special-education population, which comprises almost a quarter of the total citywide school population, will not be able to pass the MCAS," said Meyer.

Similar concerns have been echoed by Joseph Rogge, superintendent of the North Adams School
District, which has a special-needs population of about 18 percent out of 2,235 students.

"Accommodations have not been made to the extent they should have been for special-needs
children," said Rogge. "I am very concerned about our special-education students and this
graduation requirement."

In Pittsfield, the special-education department consisting of 250 employees is responsible for
children from age 3 to 22 who require special-education services. The variety of disabilities
experienced by students that the department serves range from mild reading or learning
impairments to chronic disorders such as cerebral palsy, autism and mental retardation.
Students with behavioral and emotional problems, those who speak English as a second language
or who need home tutoring or speech therapy also benefit from special-education services.
"Students in schools today are coming in with more baggage and needs than they ever did
before," said Meyer. "Nobody knew what to do with these kids in the past."

He noted that a generation ago, many of these children, even those with mild disabilities, were
permanently placed in institutions such as Avalon, Belchertown State School or even reform
schools.

But special-education laws introduced in the early and mid-1970s -- the so-called Chapter 766
regulations -- mandated that all students who wish to receive a public education are entitled
to one.

Historically, said Meyer, special-education students have earned a high school diploma by
meeting goals established on an "individual education plan" that is custom-designed for each
such student. "Even some of the more severely impaired students were able to receive a high
school diploma," he said, even if the student needed more than 13 years to obtain it.
Currently, Meyer said he and his colleagues across the state will remain in a wait-and-see mode
until the issue of how to bring closure to the school tenure of a special-education student is
addressed.

"Lawmakers are talking about giving these kids some sort of a certificate to say they've
attended public schools for a certain number of years," said Meyer.
Lawsuits being filed

As an added impetus for legislators to promptly address the graduation requirements for
special-needs children, Meyer said, parents are taking measures and demanding answers that so
far have not been forthcoming.

"We're hearing that parents of special-needs students across the state and country are filing
lawsuits about the MCAS or similar standardized tests required for graduation. That's what may
ultimately force a change in the system as it stands," said Meyer. "Parents will work very hard
to protect the rights of their children."

Indeed, concerns have been expressed by local parents of special-needs children.
"I think there should be exemptions for some children like mine, whose confidence is marginal
to begin with," said Michael Filpi, a former School Committee member who is the father of a
special-needs third-grader at Conte Elementary School.

"Maybe they have to raise the bar for mainstream kids, but the way the system is set up now, it
needs a lot of work. It's punitive to kids like mine. There's got to be a better way," said
Filpi.

Filpi's son Michael, 9, was born 11 weeks prematurely at 2 pounds, 4 ounces. "He has delays
even today in motor skills and academic skills. I don't want him to take an exam in fourth
grade that he'll bomb. What will that do to a kid like mine's self-esteem? What's the point?"
Filpi said he would welcome information from school administrators about how children such as
his can expect to graduate from high school.

Likewise, Thomas Perrea, a School Committee member and parent of a special-needs child, said,
"I've been asking and waiting for information from school officials about how the MCAS will
impact special-education children."

Perrea's son Chris, 17, is a student at Taconic High School. He has Aspergers syndrome, which
is characterized by an inability to perform multiple tasks or to follow multiple directions.
Chris attends school with a paraprofessional at his side for all classes.

"Can kids like this take MCAS with an aide present?" wondered his father. "I wish the
Legislature did a little more work planning all aspects of this exam. It makes great political
news when they talk about getting tough with kids, but one size doesn't fit all," said Perrea.
Chris Perrea is in the culinary arts program in school and aspires to work in a restaurant.
Although he failed the MCAS in eighth grade he would be exempt from passing it as a graduation
requirement since he will finish school in 2001.

Still, his father speculates that if his graduation hinged on passing the MCAS it would be
"doubtful" Chris would receive a diploma.

"Without a high school diploma, what would that do to any career he may want to have?" asked
Thomas Perrea. "A high school diploma is [a minimal requirement] these days. They just have to
have it."

Michael Filpi predicts that the outcry from parents of children with special needs will be
great in coming years if exemptions for their children are not made.

"Eventually, they'll revamp the system, but it will take a lot of parents getting involved.
They have to realize that not everyone is cut out to be a Philadelphia lawyer," he said. 

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© 1999 by MediaNews Group, Inc. and Pittsfield Publications, Inc.