Maui’s special ed
conditions don’t need
special monitor

By Debra Barayuga
Star-Bulletin

The state has made a "good faith effort" to improve special education services for students in Maui County.

But while not all the concerns over the state's efforts to comply with a federal consent decree have been addressed, the conditions in Maui County no longer warrant appointing a special master to oversee their efforts, said Eric Seitz, an attorney for the plaintiffs in the 3-year-old Felix consent decree.

The consent decree requires the state to identify all children with special needs and provide appropriate educational and mental health or related services by June 2000.

"They've done a lot of things in the interim in good faith," said Seitz. "Our position at this point is that the problems on Maui at this juncture are not significantly different from the problems statewide to justify a motion for a monitor on Maui."

Attorneys filed a motion for a preliminary injunction in June because mental health services to children in Maui County were not improving and leadership on Maui could not guarantee progress would be made.

The plaintiffs' withdrawal of their request shows they are sincerely interested in seeing real progress, said schools Superintendent Paul LeMahieu. More importantly, "it speaks of the beginning of a trusting relationship where we can look for progress and recognize it when we see it."

Among the indications that progress is being made in the Maui District include:

A Backlog of hundreds of overdue evaluations that determine whether and what kinds of special education services students are eligible to receive are down to zero, LeMahieu said.

The Maui Management Team, made up of representatives from the Departments of Education and Health are working more collaboratively and productively.

Both departments have brought in new leadership at the county level who have made commitments to comply with goals and objectives of the consent decree.

Maui children previously placed in hospital or homebound status or alternative learning centers are being evaluated to determine whether they were appropriately placed. The Maui District has assured plaintiffs that it will identify those children who were denied services and whether compensatory services are needed.

A Disproportionate number of Maui cases in which administrative hearings were requested have been resolved through mediation or settlement.