Parents Protest Change in Special Ed Services

After a more than hour-long, passionate protest by a large group of parents of special education students Monday night, the Caldwell-West Caldwell Board of Education postponed a vote until the end of the summer to switch the district's physical and occupational therapy vendors.

The board listened as numerous parents and even one child with autism questioned the qualifications of the proposed providers, and more specifically, the transition the special education students will face with new therapists.

As a result, the board voted 4-to-1, with John King opposed, to table the resolutions to award professional services contracts to Forked River-based Advance Education Advisement Corp., for occupational therapy services, and Roosevelt-based Therapeutic Outreach for Children, Inc., for physical therapy services.

After nearly two months of research and analysis, Nicholas Del'Re, interim director of special education, recommended the agencies to the board over Caldwell Pediatric Therapy Center, which has served the district for nearly 20 years.

But Superintendent Daniel Gerardi said Tuesday the contract with Caldwell Pediatrics that expires Wednesday will be temporarily extended through the district's special education summer program until the board's next public meeting on Aug. 30.

"The parents all raised good questions, but I did not have the answers readily available last night," Gerardi said. "It was a wise decision by the board to table voting on these issues until we can better communicate with the parents."

According to Gerardi, parents will receive a letter in the mail this week with updated information on the summer program. In addition, more information on the new proposed vendors will be provided at the August Board of Education meeting, Gerardi said.

Paul Palozzola, who will take over as supervisor of the special education department on Thursday, will evaluate the recommendations of Del'Re, who will oversee the summer program before returning to retirement.

Gerardi admitted it's possible Palozzola could disagree with the proposals, but pointed out that Del'Re conducted a thorough evaluation of the approximately 14 proposals that were submitted.

"Mr. Palozzola will take a look at the proposals and if there's any differing in opinion, he'll communicate that to the board," Gerardi said. "But again, Mr. Del'Re has done a very thorough job, but perhaps Mr. Palozzola will see it differently."

According to Gerardi, the state mandated last year that each school district request proposals each year for professional services.

While Caldwell Pediatrics was awarded the contract last year to provide both physical and occupational therapy, a switch to Advance Education Advisement Corp., and Therapeutic Outreach for Children Inc., would save the district approximately $35,000, Gerardi said.

"We are now required by the state to go out each year and solicit proposals for all of these services. The state's rationale and motivation for doing that is certainly more financial than anything else, looking for ways of reducing costs if the same type of service can be provided. Mr. Del'Re certainly did not take this task lightly. He's been working on this probably for the better part of the last two months," Gerardi told the group of upset parents Monday night.

"These are not in all cases the lowest proposal that we received, but are the result of Mr. Del'Re doing an analysis and weighing the cost against the quality of service by checking references, checking with other districts who have contracted these particular individuals. It was not an arbitrary decision. It was something that was not done quickly or arbitrarily or just for the sake of getting it done or just for the sake of saving money. Mr. Del'Re I think cares too much about the program and about the district to do anything that he thinks would harm or hurt the children."

While pointing out the district's reduction of 29 special education aides for next year, parents questioned why they or the district's special education teachers weren't consulted during Del'Re's evaluation of the proposals. 

Parents were further angered by the lack of notice, considering the summer program will begin this week, and by Del'Re's absence from the public meeting to answer their questions.

"We don't generally have directors of particular departments present for these specific issues," Gerardi said Tuesday. "It was unexpected that we received such a response to the program. There were a lot of good questions that the parents asked and there's a legitimate concern any time a change is occurring."

However, even the smallest change, parents said, will have a significant impact on children with special needs.

"You can stand up there and look at numbers and crunch them and say it's black and white, it's a matter of $35,000, nothing is changing in the services—as a parent of a child with special needs, the very fact that the therapist is changing, is change. That's going to set them back," said Tara Hapward, a West Caldwell mother of a daughter who graduated from the district's preschool disability program.

"Were the teachers consulted on the proposals? Were any of the special ed teachers consulted? Were any parents consulted on this decision? If these are the people in this room that you're serving, I'd like to know why none of us were consulted prior to this."

Gerardi told parents Del'Re has assured that the new agencies will provide the same level of service at simply a cheaper rate.

However, Jason Campbell, a therapist with Caldwell Pediatrics, questioned that level of service.

"Looking at the New Jersey Administrative Code, Chapter 14, sub-chapter five, school districts are directed to use providers that are listed on the state-approved list of agencies," Campbell said. "In looking at this information, I'm finding that these agencies do not have the appropriate therapists listed on the state Web site, which was updated this morning."

According to Campbell, Advance Education Advisement has no occupational therapists listed on the state Web site, while Therapeutic Outreach for Children has no physical therapists listed.

"I'm concerned about the qualifications and the ability of these individuals to provide quality care that families and residents of this district have become accustomed to and deserve and required to receive through their IEPs," Campbell said.

In addition, West Caldwell parent Ray Castellano pointed out that Advance Education Advisement has numerous job postings for therapists who are "needed immediately" in Essex County.

Therapeutic Outreach for Children is also understaffed, and as a result, would have needed to conduct physical therapy sessions in the children's homes this summer, if the recommendation had been passed Monday night.

"If my child is going to be treated at home with the equipment I have in my house, he will most certainly regress," said Marianne Shulman, a West Caldwell parent of a 15-year-old son with special needs.

"You think you're saving money? We're all going to be coming to you, asking for more services because our children aren't going to continue making the progress. With all due respect to you, and I know you're trying to serve us well, we are experts of our children and no one else is."

After 19 years of providing physical therapy and 13 years of occupational therapy to the district, Caldwell Pediatric Therapy Center Owner Judy D'Annunzio was upset when she was informed of the recommendation on Friday and read a letter she prepared for the board during the meeting.

"I would be remiss if I didn't speak on behalf of my staff. They are well-trained, highly professional therapists who have provided quality service for many years. My therapists are committed to providing beyond appropriate services to our students. Several of my therapists live in the district and take pride in the fact that they are serving their neighbors, understanding the responsibility that brings," D'Annunzio, a West Caldwell resident, read.

"My counselors give countless hours of unbilled time to the district because it's the right thing to do. You can imagine my sadness when on the last day of the regular-school schedule, we were informed that our services will no longer be required. It is confusing and upsetting on many levels."

Caldwell Pediatrics, located near the end of Bloomfield Avenue in West Caldwell, also provided convenience for parents, who were concerned over the distance to the new agencies' locations in Ocean and Mercer counties.

While Gerardi pointed out that Advance Education Advisement has a satellite office in West Orange, some parents wondered if special education students who attend school out of district will be provided transportation to that office.

Others simply felt more communication was necessary.

"I can speak for 15 different sets of parents who I have spoken to. We feel like we're in the dark right now and I just don't know why," West Caldwell parent Anthony Bonanno said. "I'm very, very concerned that this is being done too quickly."

However, the district now plans to provide parents with a more informative presentation in August before voting on the proposals.

"We're going to get more information on the proposals for the August meeting to answer the questions parents raised," Board President Mary Davidson said Tuesday. "We were concerned—we just couldn't vote in good conscience."