Severe special ed staffing shortages send NHPS leaders looking to Hartford
As NHPS struggles to fund special education programs, district leaders push for an increase in state funding.

Zachary Suri, Contributing Photographer
This month’s Board of Alders Education Committee meeting shed light on a growing crisis at New Haven Public Schools: the district is struggling to pay for the special education programs the district is legally required to provide.
“The situation for our special education teachers and related service staffing is a situation that is very, very dire,” Typhanie Jackson, executive director of student services at NHPS, said.
As of November 2024, NHPS serves over 3,000 special education students, Jackson told the committee. Of these, around 300 are in out-of-district facilities, around 200 in charter schools and over 550 identified special education multilingual students.
And in recent years, NHPS has seen an increase in the number of students with learning disabilities and autism enrolling in the district’s schools, Jackson said. This school year alone, nearly 30 new students with complex needs requiring specialized programs have been identified, she added.
To properly serve its special needs students, the school district would require almost $8 million in additional funding each year, according to a staffing analysis conducted by NHPS that used data from other states and school districts. NHPS already relies on part-time contractors for much of its special education programming, lacking the funds to hire full-time staff, Jackson said.
The district also spends around $24 million each year on “out-of-district placements” for students who require additional support that NHPS cannot provide in house, as well as approximately $4 million for transportation for these students. These costs are exacerbated by private equity firms’ ownership of many out-of-district special education facilities, Jackson explained.
The district is hoping to expand in-district options to save money in the near future, Jackson said.
NHPS special education programs are supported by around $7 million in federal funding through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, though a majority of its funding comes from the district’s annual allocations of the state’s Education Cost Sharing program and the Board of Alders. The state also specifically offsets a portion of the district’s special education costs.
Costs are exacerbated by individualized special education programming. Once the district identifies a student in need of special education, NHPS must design an Individualized Education Program for the student. NHPS is required by federal law to provide the educational services outlined in the student’s IEP.
Half a dozen NHPS special education teachers and parents testified to the committee about their struggles with understaffing and special education services in New Haven schools.
Patrick Foley, a parent of a special education student in NHPS, described the “frustrating process” of trying to get his 9-year-old son the services he needs. Obtaining a diagnosis and developing an IEP, he said, was “lengthy, difficult and significantly delayed.”
His son has had to rely on outside tutoring, Foley said, because the implementation of his son’s IEP by NHPS has been “at best inconsistent and unsupported.” He called on the district to implement “clear, practical” standards for its special education programming.
Asked by Alder Sarah Miller whether the district was able to fulfil all IEPs given current understaffing, Jackson acknowledged gaps in NHPS service, but insisted the district was still fulfilling its legal requirements.
“I wouldn’t say no, that the IEPs are not being met,” Jackson said. “I definitely know that there are some places where we have had some gaps.” In particular, she added, NHPS has had to rely on assistance from retired special education professionals to fulfill its obligations.
All eyes on Hartford
New Haven officials look to Hartford to alleviate special education funding shortages.
“Everybody should save your testimony for when we’re in Hartford. We need to repurpose it,” Miller told members of the public after their testimony, urging them to also testify at the state capitol this session.
Jackson sits on the state’s special education task force which was tasked with proposing changes to special education programs in the new legislative session. Among the policies up for review is the Education Cost Sharing formula which redistributes tax revenue to support urban schools. Right now, the ECS does not take into account special education costs, NHPS Superintendent Madeline Negrón told the committee.
In an interview with the News last week, Mayor Justin Elicker called for the state to loosen its fiscal guardrails to support urban public schools in the state. Funds would go directly to hiring more staff, he said, positions especially needed for special education programs.
The final report of the state’s Task Force to Study Special Education Services and Funding was released on Jan. 15.
“Special education in Connecticut schools is currently being undermined by a severe staff shortage,” the report concluded. “In many cases, needed services, mandated under a student’s IEP, cannot be appropriately delivered due to lack of staff.”
A state program that reimburses districts for some of the excess costs incurred by special education programs is inadequate to address student needs, the report added.
Additionally, federal programs designed to cover 40 percent of special education costs, currently cover only about 4 percent of special education costs in the state, according to the report.
The report recommended changing the ECS formula to take special education costs into account and expanding the coverage of the excess cost grant funding program. The taskforce also recommended the state dedicate funds to support in-district special education programs, reducing the need for out-of-district facilities.
“The Task Force is clear that the time is ripe for Connecticut to make a renewed and strengthened commitment to public education, and especially to students with disabilities,” the report concludes.
Earlier this month, the leaders of both houses of the Connecticut General Assembly held a rare joint press conference where they declared education a top priority for the 2025 legislative session.
The first bill of the session — Senate Bill 1 — will address the state’s dire education funding needs, Senate President and New Haven Senator Martin Looney announced at the press conference.
“We all know that we need to do all that we can to increase resources for our entire education system,” Looney said.
Looney echoed the cities’ call for an increase in the state’s contribution to the Education Cost Sharing program and emphasized the need to address disparities in special education funding.
Meanwhile, staffing needs in NHPS special education programs remain urgent.
“Quite honestly, if we can’t get staffing levels to the point of comparing to our neighboring towns … it becomes that much more difficult for those folks who do remain here in New Haven,” Jackson told the Board of Alders committee. “The reason why we’re able to make it work now is because we have very dedicated staff who are truly committed to our kids.”
The Board of Alders Education Committee meets on the fourth Wednesday of every month at 6:00 p.m. at New Haven City Hall.
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