As New York City grapples with the ever-growing costs of special education in private settings, Mayor Eric Adams' administration has poured a record $1.35 billion into private education for students with disabilities, an effort both deemed a critical catch-up and a scrutiny-inviting expenditure. According to a Gothamist report, this spending was partly in response to a pressing backlog of cases, some dating back as much as eight years.
Liz Vladeck, the city's education department general counsel, was quoted by Gothamist as saying, "We're very proud of how effective we've been at catching up on what was being called a totally broken system." Despite these efforts, the number of complaints on behalf of students with disabilities has increased from 17,833 in the 2021-22 school year to 26,215 in the 2023-24 school year. This surge reflects not only an increase in diagnoses such as autism, ADHD, and dyslexia but, according to Vladeck, also an element of fraud in some cases.
Meanwhile, on another front, Adams has moved to broaden the safety net for private institutions. As reported by SILive, the mayor signed legislation expanding the reimbursement program for private schools to employ security guards. Previously, only schools with more than 300 students were eligible, but with the new legislation, this threshold will drop to schools with 150 or more students. Councilmember Justin Brannan championed the program's expansion, stating, "When we take care of their safety, kids can just focus on school."
The overflowing faucet of funds directed towards special education for students with disabilities in private settings raises eyebrows, particularly in light of the education budget cuts from the preceding year. Then-Schools Chancellor David Banks directly linked these cuts to the increasing reimbursements, stating, "All this money that is meant for the kids in our public schools are going to private schools," which he equated to money going "out the back door every single day." Parents, confronting tuition that can easily exceed $70,000 annually, are fronting costs and subsequently suing the city for reimbursement, a trend reflecting the city's struggle to provide comprehensive services in public schools, as detailed by Gothamist. These include specialized support such as speech therapy, occupational therapy, and specialized instructional support that remains a mandatory city expense even when provided by private and religious schools.
