Volume 4 - Issue 1 - DBU Journal of K-12 Educational Research - Page 58

56 receive only a little to a moderate amount of support; and charter school educators want training or professional development to help meet the needs of students with disabilities, particularly those with severe disabilities. Conclusion Charter schools have an obligation and a mission to be innovative. This mission includes advancing the educational opportunities and outcomes for students with disabilities. While most charter school leaders understand their obligations, many do not have the fiscal or human resources to develop an effective special education program that will produce higher achievement for students in special education. These challenges may lead to charter schools under enrolling and under serving students with disabilities. Charter school leaders, parents of students with disabilities, teachers, and policy makers must come together to make a difference in public education by prioritizing the needs of students with disabilities through innovative and effective special education programs in charter schools. References Ahearn, E. (2001). Public charter schools and students with disabilities (Report No. E609). Arlington, VA: ERIC Clearinghouse on Disabilities and Gifted Education (ED455656). Retrieved from https://www.ericdigests. org/2002-2/public.htm Center for Education Reform. (2018). National charter school laws ranking & scorecard 2018: The essential guide for policymakers & advocates . Retrieved from https://www. edreform.com/issues/choice-charter-schools/laws- legislation/ Center for Law and Education. (2012). Charter schools and students with disabilities: Preliminary analysis of the legal issues and areas of concern . Retrieved from http://www. cleweb.org/sites/cleweb.org/files/assets/Administrative/ Charter%20Schools%20and%20Students%20with%20 DisabilitiesFinalDraft.pdf Center for Research on Education Outcomes. (2013). CREDO national charter school study . Retrieved from http://credo.stanford.edu/documents /NCSS%202013 %20Final%20Draft.pdf Question Category Quantitative Qualitative Support Percentages Comments Receiving 73% Little to moderate support R1—lacking staff to support our SPED students. R2—Expect a lot from us but do not give us the resources necessary. R16—We need more support to meet the needs of our kiddos. Preferably more than inclusion aid for the campus. R23—The more students we have the less help we receive. R56—SPED department is understaffed. R72—Need more help. Very overloaded. Want to receive 55% Training/ Professional Development R5—I would like training on the process of assessing a student. R23—We should receive more training on how to better support students with mild to severe disabilities. R33—I think training for the teachers would be helpful. R54—We need specific training on Autism and Oppositional Defiance Disorder. R82—The district does not always provide enough personnel to meet guidelines. R57—Staff are overloaded, more staff needed. R73—We have too many SPED students for one teacher. They are handling over 40 students each. They need help! Deborah Garton, EdD