Parents, teachers blast Osceola County schools for policy changes affecting students with disabilities
Orlando Weekly | By McKenna Schueler | March 18, 2025
Exceptional student education will be offered to fewer students at fewer schools beginning next school year
More than 2,700 people have signed a petition calling on Osceola County to uphold access to support services for students with disabilities in the public school system, after district leaders opted last week to change rules concerning schools’ exceptional student education (ESE) programs.
Under new changes, Osceola County Public Schools will begin integrating students with disabilities who are in separate classrooms into regular classrooms with kids who don’t have more specialized needs. Osceola County teachers’ unions and educators blasted the move on Facebook as “disgusting” and likely to make teachers who are already burnt out — and potentially lacking the training to care for students with disabilities — even more stressed and overburdened.
Students in the ESE program — which may include students with autism, visual impairments, intellectual disabilities, or deaf or hard-of-hearing students, among others — make up 15 percent of Osceola County Schools’ student population. The district has said they plan to offer “professional development” opportunities to teachers to help them learn how to adequately support ESE students, but teachers have expressed skepticism.
The plan also involves a consolidation of schools that will continue to offer ESE programming. “Students continuing to demonstrate the need for receiving
instruction in the separate class using data from research-based interventions will remain in the current setting. However, separate class settings will be centralized at identified sites within the District,” a flyer from the district offering an overview of upcoming changes reads.
Melanie Thomas, a parent of a child with autism at Narcoossee Elementary School in St. Cloud, is upset by the changes.
“Any decision to compromise these crucial ESE services could be detrimental, leading to severe and lasting consequences for students like my son who rely on these services amidst an environment already fraught with challenges,” Thomas wrote in a petition she organized on Change.org, which has already secured 2,843 signatures as of publication.
“We need to ensure our children and teachers alike continue to have the best possible support for their education and development,” the petition continues.
Thomas told school district leaders in an email ahead of the Osceola County School Board’s meeting last week that due to having her own disability, she is unable to drive and therefore cannot transport her son to a new location within the district that will offer the services he needs.
“Narcoossee Elementary not only provides the necessary ESE services, but it also accommodates his transportation needs and supports his utilization of an attendant being with him on the bus in the morning — something vital to his access to education,” Thomas wrote over email last Tuesday, forwarded to Orlando Weekly.
“Let me be abundantly clear: This is just the beginning of my son’s education, and I will continue to advocate for him for the next 13 years,” she added. “If the district attempts to diminish or remove ESE services, I will not go away. Parents like me will not allow Osceola County Schools to fail students with disabilities by stripping them of the support they need to succeed.”
The school district, which serves more than 69,000 students, claims the changes are meant to help them align their schools with the state’s goals. According to the district, about 21 percent of the schools’ ESE students are currently taught in separate classrooms. The Florida Department of Education wants to see just 12.7 percent of these students taught separately.
“The district is aiming to provide more inclusive educational opportunities, ensuring that students with disabilities are fully integrated into general education environments when appropriate, with the necessary supports in place,” the district states.
The Osceola County Education Association, the local teachers’ union, has urged teachers to advocate for more support, communicate with parents and to discuss strategies with colleagues for best supporting students.
The union expects the changes to result in an increased workload for teachers, and warns its educators to expect potential frustration and disruptions during class time. “The district has not agreed to additional paraprofessionals,” a FAQ flyer from the union reads. “Teachers will still be responsible for implementing IEP [individualized education program] accommodations, even without additional planning time to attend meetings.”
The Osceola County School Board approved the ESE programming changes last Tuesday. Educators will have the chance to receive training over the rest of the current school year and summer. Programming will be consolidated to certain schools beginning next school year.
