Resident Asks Legislators To Increase Special Education Funding

Brookfield resident Sally Flaschberger spoke at the Joint Finance Committee hearing on the state budget held Thursday at Greendale High School.

The hearing was the first of four being held around the state to give residents the chance to have their say on Gov. Scott Walker’s 2013-15 budget. After the hearings, the committee will vote on any changes before sending their version on to the Assembly and Senate.

Flaschberger’s 18-year-old son has physical and learning disabilities. Despite his disabilities, he will be graduating this spring and will go to college next fall. She is also an advocate for people who have special needs.

Over the past 20 years, the state has cut special education funding by 44 percent and the state pays 26 percent of the cost for special education. Many school districts have made cuts, which have not gone unnoticed by parents, she said. The Survival Coalition of Wisconsin Disability Organization, a group Flaschberger represents, did a survey and found that 46 percent of respondents had said their child’s education was worse than the year before.

“I work with many families that have seen many cuts to their children’s education, the same education that has been imperative to my son’s success in his school district,” she said. “Schools are struggling to provide the basic services to prepare a student for post secondary education or jobs.”

The Survival Coalition of Wisconsin Disability Organization supports an investment in students and asked for a 30 percent increase in state reimbursement for special education be included in the budget and an increase – to 55 percent -- in the special education fund, Flaschberger said.

She also asked the Committee to take the Special Needs Voucher Program out of the budget because there will be no rights under the IDEA. If a child with special needs attends a public school, the school district is held legally liable if they fail to meet the conditions of an individualized education plans. However, students who attend private schools would not have the same protection, Flaschberger said.