Director of special services outlines staff, IEP and program changes, plans compensatory summer services

Deb Galey, director of special services for Nantucket Public Schools, gave a comprehensive briefing to the school committee on May 19 describing staffing, caseloads, program changes and corrective‑action work.

Galey said the district currently has 388 students qualified for Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and that out‑of‑district residential placements involved 10 students placed across eight schools. She acknowledged staffing shortages earlier in the year among speech‑language pathologists (SLPs) after one provider died and another went on medical leave; she said contracted providers and off‑island hires allowed the district to stabilize services and "as of yesterday, we have just decided with the lack of applicants we're fully staffed right now for our SLPs for next year." (Deb Galey)

Galey described an independent integrated program review (the report spans 358 pages with a 30‑page executive summary) that focused on inclusive programming, vertical alignment, staffing efficiency and short‑ to long‑term capacity planning. As a response she said the district is creating two positions: an evaluation team chair to manage initial evaluations and a shared structured reading teacher between NES and NIS to address a substantive grade‑2/grade‑3 support need.

On compensatory services, Galey said the district will assess what students missed between roughly November and May and offer summer services based on measured regression and student need, not an hour‑for‑hour replacement. "When they don't get them, the bar in Massachusetts is somewhat ambiguous because it's not an hour for hour payment," she said, and added that parents will get notification near the end of the school year about choices for summer programming.

Galey also highlighted curriculum investments and supports: Orton‑Gillingham Academy training (year 4, IDEA grant‑funded) with several teachers advancing toward associate and clinical levels; expansion of the integrated preschool to five days a week; continued SEL programming (Second Step, Zones of Regulation), the Bridge room tiered intervention, SBIRT screening and a newly awarded multi‑tiered suicide prevention grant that will shape 2026–27 professional development and postvention planning.

Committee members asked about placement selection and program criteria; Galey said placements result from a range of factors including attorney settlements, family collaboration and student needs and that the district will bring two returning students back in September 2026 as their needs allowed. She emphasized the district's relative success keeping placements local compared with statewide averages, while noting the high cost of some placements (she cited an average placement cost of about $225,000 per year and one midyear placement at $360,000).

The committee did not vote on program changes at the meeting but thanked staff for the report and asked for follow up on criteria for reinstating paused programs and on professional‑development plans tied to the external review.