Comment Period Open for Revised Preschool Rules

By Katie Johnson posted 05-26-2022 08:40 AM

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Members may be aware that some districts have encountered problems with the current preschool special education administrative rules, possibly forcing them to hire additional staff and/or increase the number of preschool classrooms. To address this issue, a group of stakeholders including the Buckeye Association of School Administrators (BASA) formed a workgroup through the Ohio Educational Service Center Association (OESCA). The workgroup collected information from the field that helped to describe, quantify, and amplify the concerns from the field. Utilizing that input, the workgroup worked with ODE to find solutions, and as a result, changes to the preschool rules are being proposed.

The proposed changes to the rules are now out for public comment as the first step in the rule-making process. View the proposed rule on the Department’s website. You may provide comments about the rule by email to rulecomments@education.ohio.gov through June 1, 2022.

The proposed rule changes provide two options for districts to consider for their preschool classrooms that provide services to students with disabilities. The proposed changes are underlined below and use the term “or fewer” in both options to provide the flexibility needed in having ratios that are not strictly 50% students with disabilities and 50% “typical” students.

A maximum of eight children with disabilities enrolled in a public school preschool general education class that is taught by a general education teacher who meets the lead qualifications, and the class must be made up of fifty percent or fewer children with disabilities enrolled than children without disabilities
A regular early childhood education setting in which fifty percent or fewer of the students are children with disabilities.

- This option continues to provide the integrated classroom as an option and allows for the grandfathering in of teachers who have a special education/intervention specialist licensure

It is extremely important that members participate by submitting feedback on these proposed changes.

After receiving comments from the public, ODE staff will propose the rule changes to the state board of education at its June meeting. We are hopeful the board will vote its approval at its June or July meeting.

Procedurally, following the state board’s approval, the proposal must go through a review by the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review (JCARR), so the rule changes may not be official before the start of the next school year. However, we are reasonably certain the JCARR rule review process will be a formality in this case.

Again, we urge you to participate in the current public comment opportunity on the proposed rule changes. Feel free to contact us with questions.

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