By Crescenzo Vellucci
The Vanguard Sacramento Bureau Chief
SACRAMENTO, CA – The Sacramento County Grand Jury Monday issued a stinging rebuke of the huge 40,000-student Sacramento City Unified School District, charging—after an eight-month probe—the district “deserves an ‘F’ grade” for dooming many children to a learning life in special needs, not a regular classroom.
The Grand Jury, an “independent watchdog over public entities” in the county, maintained in its report the district is “not meeting the needs of its students with learning, physical, and behavioral disabilities,” insisting SCUSD’s “failure means students with special needs do not receive the appropriate education and support services required by law.”
“The Board of Education has failed to direct the administration to create a working plan and district-wide accepted goals to guide the Special Education Department,” said Steve Caruso, 2023-24 foreperson. Of the 40,000 students in the district, about 7,000 receive special education services.
The Grand Jury noted, “Despite repeated warnings and numerous recommendations from national experts, the school board and administration have failed to develop a plan and services to address the needs of these students.”
Promising to “hold SCUSD accountable, the GJ added, “If the District provided early intervention programs starting in kindergarten, many students could avoid special education altogether. All students benefit from having their unique learning styles understood, so they receive the support they need to thrive in the regular classroom.”
But, by not providing “early intervention to all students in all schools, SCUSD inappropriately funnels students with learning challenges into often-isolated special education programs. Research shows students with learning disabilities are more successful if they are taught in a general education classroom,” explained the GJ.
The report added, “If the District provided early intervention programs starting in kindergarten, many students could avoid special education altogether. All students benefit from having their unique learning styles understood, so they receive the support they need to thrive in the regular classroom.”
“Incredibly, there’s no plan for the more than 7,000 special education students in the district,” Caruso said, adding, “Both the board and the administration seem content to ignore these students and their parents.”
SCUSD also fails all students by not consistently assessing each student—through “early assessment and intervention system,” which is used in just 47 elementary schools—to determine their specific learning needs, the Grand Jury said.
Caruso insisted that “educational experts told the Grand Jury if SCUSD assessed students’ learning needs early and provided them with the specific support they need, many students could avoid special education altogether and thrive in the regular education classroom.”
The report noted, “SCUSD has been officially admonished numerous times regarding its Special Education Department. The California Department of Education (CDE) has found SCUSD out of compliance for several years. SCUSD has received reports outlining the District’s deficiencies that also provided proven research-based recommendations. In addition, SCUSD has been subject to numerous complaints.”
Writing, “Who suffers? Our students. They deserve better,” the Grand Jury said the CDE “intends to impose conditions on the use of special education funds by directing a portion of funds to be utilized by SCUSD to hire a Technical Assistant Facilitator. Appointed by the CDE, this facilitator will collaborate with SCUSD to secure prompt and comprehensive compliance with corrective actions.”
The Grand Jury unbridled criticism of the SCUSD didn’t spare teachers and administrators in the district, noting they “fail to update and refine Individual Educational Plans (IEP) that are created for each special education student. All IEPs are required to be reviewed annually to ensure the special education student receives the services to which they are entitled.”
The GJ also reported, “Tension and low morale among administration, faculty, staff, and bargaining units in SCUSD Special Education Department, ” adding, “Turnover adds to district-wide internal strife and low morale especially when the focus changes frequently with no clear expectations or consequences for not following procedures.”
A ray of hope, the Grand Jury cited, is that a “recent change of top administrative leadership seems to bode well for improving districtwide relationships in the future,” but then argued “infighting among district office administrators can still thwart progress.”
The Grand Jury report made 13 general recommendations to SCUSD to “improve Special Education,” including the Board of Education directing “staff to create and then formally adopt a master plan for special ed.”
SCUSD has been reprimanded by CDE many times regarding non-compliance for special education laws. Most recently, in April 2024, CDE issued a “notification of continued non-compliance,” and the CDE told the GJ it has sent “40 documented emails requesting required documentation and reminding of deadlines, 22 direct phone calls and meetings along with 10 formal letters,” but “SCUSD has not acted to correct the problems.”
