Center-based special education programs in Kent County will be managed by another entity next year.
The Grand Rapids Public Schools Board of Education voted to transfer the $36-million programs and related services to the Kent Intermediate School District or another educational entity, effective July 1, 2019.
While not yet official, Kent ISD Superintendent Ron Caniff said the plan is for Kent ISD to begin managing the programs, as is common practice in other areas. Kent ISD already provides educational support for the area’s 20 school districts in other ways, Caniff said, such as technical training, adult education and preschool programs.
Caniff said the students involved in the center-based programs include those with various needs, some physical and some cognitive or emotional. They receive education through one of these programs rather than in traditional schools.
Schools and programs involved include: Ken-O-Sha Home Community, Grand Rapids Oral Deaf Program, Early Childhood Special Education Center at Campus, Lincoln Developmental Center, Lincoln School, Pine Grove Learning Center, Community Transition Campus, Kent Education Center at Oakleigh, Kent Education Center at Beltline and Project SEARCH.
Though utilized by 20 schools in the area, GRPS has been managing the programs for decades, said John Helmholdt, head of GRPS communications, because the district “pioneered” these types of programs before they were commonplace.
Now that the area has grown, education leaders believe it’s the right time to transfer management.
For the rest of this story, you can check out the Grand Rapids Business Journal.
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