Champaign School District undergoing audit of special education programs

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) — After a settlement, the Champaign School District will undergo an audit of their special education programs.

The audit will be done by Dan Cates, a former superintendent with expertise on special education, with oversight from attorney Neil Takkif.

The Board of Education approved of its authorization at their special meeting Tuesday night, with four members voting for the settlement including the audit and three members abstaining.

“Thank you to the families and advocates who have tirelessly sacrificed for these students and who have been the voices for those who cannot speak for themselves,” Betsy Holder said in a post on her Facebook page. “Change won’t happen overnight, but we are finally on the right path with taking accountability and moving forward as a district and community to best serve our most marginalized children.”

Julie Duvall, the CU Autism Network executive director, said the district needs to be transparent and able to handle tough conversations in order to improve their special education programs. She also said SPED students and their families should be able to weigh in on the audit and eventually see the final results.

“In doing the SPED audit, we would like to ask that it is very, very clear,” Duvall said at the public comment section of the meeting. “The transparency in this district is very well-known to not to be very existent. We want to make sure, as a SPED point of view, everybody’s voice is listened to.”

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