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Alternate Education in Winsted
By Joe Cadrain, Winsted
As far as I can tell after searching the Connecticut website on education, Winchester/ Winsted has the distinction of having the only Alternate High School in the state of Connecticut. This makes it extremely difficult to compare what we are doing in this school to anything except itself. There are those who say the school was started because Gilbert did not want these problem children in their school, while others believe the local school administrators wanted a high school of their own.
You may have another theory on why the school exists, and I for one would like to hear from you, as I feel we need to do what is best for the children in our district. Every school district in our state has alternate education programs for students with problems. One of their goals is to help students with problems to stay in or return to regular classrooms. Unfortunately, our Alternate High School only returns students to normal classrooms when their school lacks space.
Alternate education programs are part of every school, including Gilbert. The main purpose of these programs is to provide special education needs to help students to continue their education process with their regular classmates. Special needs children require special programs that sometimes include one-on-one supervision. Other students with disabilities need to be placed out of district, as our district cannot comply with their needs.
On August 15, 2002 our state Commissioner of Education sent a letter to every superintendent notifying them that new rules are in place for students with disabilities. The first two paragraphs read as follows:
"Each school-aged child with an intellectual disability or another disability is entitled to be educated with non-disabled children to the maximum extent appropriate. The State Board of Education has affirmed this right through its position statement, January 3, 2001, on ‘Educating Students with Disabilities.’
"The Department believes that children with disabilities, including children in public or private institutions or other care facilities, should be educated with children who are not disabled to the maximum extent appropriate. Special classes, separate schooling, and other practices that result in the removal of children with disabilities from the regular educational environment occur only when the nature of severity of the disability of a child is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily."
In my opinion the Winchester School System needs to study the options it has to comply with this new state mandate, as the Alternate High School would have serious problems meeting these standards. I do not believe that this matter should wait until a new superintendent is in place. Once a temporary superintendent is in place, this problem should be near the top of the list.
Have a nice day.
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