Parents of special ed students at T.H. Rogers have received a letter dated November 15 saying that their students are going to be moved out of their specialized program at the school with its specially- trained teachers and aides and instead moved to their home schools.

In that letter, with a remarkable tone deafness, Cindy Hoppman, the executive director of the Office of Special Education Services for the Houston ISD, writes:  "We are excited to share a new opportunity for your student." Parents are invited to either a 9 a.m. meeting to discuss this on Friday or the chance to see a virtual meeting at 10:30 a.m. the same day. Just perfect for working parents.

For several years now, two things have been true about T.H. Rogers. One, is that for some reason a succession of administrators have set their sights on disbanding the school, home to three different student populations: deaf children, special education students  and the gifted and talented.

Two, that while all these strategies were underway and amid declining funding, T.H. Rogers continued to receive national and statewide accolades for excellence at the special program in which the three student groups learned from each other.  Accolades the district was more than willing to accept.

As it turns out, students in the deaf program were quietly moved out last year, class by class to other district schools

HISD was harshly criticized in a 2020 Texas Education Agency investigation into its special ed operations which called the district's services a "historical failure."  This was on top of a 2018 report that made essentially the same findings, conclusions which the district disputed and called old news.  Among the findings were that principals were not held accountable for the special ed services on their campuses, families were not consulted about their children's special ed program and there was not sufficient oversight to ensure there was proper training for staff members working with the special ed students.

Asked a series of questions about why the district thinks this move was in the best interests of the children involved, Luis A, Morales, HISD media relations spokesman issued this HISD response:

"HISD is committed to ensuring all students have access to the best environment to ensure an exceptional educational experience. In an effort to ensure the least restrictive environment (LRE) for our thirty-two 1st – 12th grade Preparing Students for Independence (PSI) special education students at the T.H. Rogers School, we will be transitioning these students to their home/neighborhood campuses (with PSI programs) for the 2023-2024 school year. This decision was made after extensive consideration and collaboration with our TEA Special Education Conservators."

Understandably, some of the parents of special ed students in the program don't want to see the same thing happen to their children as was done with the deaf students and are furiously protesting to the district, whether that does any good.

Kelly Millner, an HISD teacher for 15 years and the mother of a daughter who aged out of the T.H. Rogers Special Ed program is appalled by the district's decision and points out the complications that may well arise.

T.H. Rogers is specially outfitted with a huge storage area for the special equipment that accompanies many of the profoundly mentally and physically challenged, she said. Where is that equipment going to be stored in the home schools? T.H. Rogers has modified classrooms to meet the needs of special ed students with restrooms and showers for when there's a bathroom accident, she said. What facilities will be available at their home schools?

Many of the students involved in the "Preparing Students for Independence" Classroom (PSI) despite the title, will not be able to live independently because of their disabilities, she said, but they still deserve the best education possible.

Parents Diedra and Paul Senegal wrote in a November 4 letter to HISD Superintendent Millard House II and other HISD administrators, in which they called the move plan "devastating and disturbing news."

In addition, they wrote, many of the parents calling the district office have not had their phone calls returned. They pointed out that many of the donations made to the school over the years were prompted by the presence of the special ed children there.

Another letter writer, Julie Beeson wrote to Superintendent House saying:

"It is not practical nor in the best interest of the PSI [special ed] students to be moved to different schools across the district. These children are safest and most easily taught and cared for in a community of highly trained teachers, specialists, aides, nurses, and therapists all pitching in and working together. It takes intentional collaborative planning and skilled support to provide children like  my son quality instruction in the least restrictive yet MOST SUPPORTIVE environment.

"Outside of academics, there is an endless cycle of activities that require specific training for all who work within PSI like: oral feedings, tube feedings, manual and equipment assisted transfers, diaper changes, and repositioning. There is also training required for staff who use equipment like standing frames, walkers, orthotics, and assistive technology during the school day. A great deal of partnership throughout the PSI staff happens behind the scenes in order for teachers and aides to execute effective daily instruction and care. The teachers and aides of these students need their PSI community. Working with a profound special needs population can be a lonely and exhausting job."

According to Beeson the deaf students who were moved out last year are not doing well.

"The Special Education department has been emboldened by what they call a “successful” removal of the Regional Day School Program for the Deaf last school year. I have learned that the deaf students and their teachers are floundering because their classes were spread out over different campuses. The district and the SPED department failed these children and teachers, plain and simple. Now they plan to do the same to the PSI program. We have all heard the district’s lament over reasons why disabled students are in the way of the school’s success over the years: PSI student absences cause money loss; test scores are negatively impacted; those kids cost too much... THERE IS NO GOOD EXCUSE for destroying the community and educational environment of these severely disabled students, not a single excuse exists."