Mar 10, 2025, Johnson County Post (KS): Gardner Edgerton mulls ‘therapeutic day school’ for students with most intensive needs
The Gardner Edgerton school district is looking into a new in-house “therapeutic day school” program to assist students who need more care and attention than a traditional school setting can provide.
The school board will vote on whether to move forward with the new program at its meeting Monday night.
The program would serve a handful of students with disabilities who have “the most intensive support needs,” according to school district documents.
“Something that I like to say when I educate others about disability is it’s a natural part of human existence,” said Dan Pollitt, coordinator of social-emotional learning for Gardner Edgerton schools, during a school board meeting last month.
“You can’t control that you are born with dyslexia or born with autism,” he added.
The program could save the district money
The program aims to return “a small number of” K-12 students with disabilities who are currently being sent out of the school district for services back into the district, according to school district documents.
District staff noted that sending students out of the district to get the one-on-one support they need is “extremely expensive,” so retaining them with the new in-district program could allow the program to pay for itself.
At the Feb. 10 board meeting, Pollitt said placing 16 to 18 students currently in need of such a high level of services out of district costs $1 million annually.
“If we were to do this in-house, it increases our autonomy, provides us more flexibility,” he said. “It’s a growth opportunity, and it can be fiscally sound.”
As an example, it costs the district roughly $185,100 to send four students out of the district. Through the proposed Therapeutic Day School program would cost the district about $123,500, resulting in a potential savings of roughly $61,500.
Pollitt said that for special education, there is a value to educating students in “our own” neighborhood with their peers.
“It fosters community and like-mindedness,” he said. “And it has shared experiences.”
If approved, the district would likely kick off the program at the start of the 2025-26 school year.
However, some school board members said last month that they wanted to delay opening the program to the spring of 2026 to work out the details.
The Therapeutic Day School would be the most restrictive of alternative schooling options in the Gardner Edgerton School District. Image via school district documents.
How the program will work
Four to five students in third to seventh grades would be accepted for the first school year, according to district documents.
The program would need one special education teacher, one or two paraeducators and one mental health professional to start.
District staff are considering multiple existing sites at which to house the new program, with Edgerton Elementary being the top choice. The therapeutic day school program would be run completely separately from the other traditional classrooms at the school.
Several security measures would go into place, including secure entries and exits for therapeutic day school students and padded safe rooms.
The therapeutic day school would also be housed across multiple rooms for instruction and administration.
The district is also hoping to partner with local law enforcement so officers can quickly respond to the day school site if needed.
Finding the “right” staff for the program
Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services Ben Boothe said the district has to find and identify the families interested in a return to in-district school placement as well as the “right” employees.
“I think we need to be upfront with both groups — both families and any potential employees,” he said. “If the other side doesn’t work out in this scenario, then we are on hold until this works out.”
In talks about picking Edgerton Elementary for the program’s location, Board Vice President Greg Chapman said, “it is absolutely phenomenal” the district is thinking “outside the box” to find a solution that is better for the community and students.
“I just want to make sure we roll it out very intentionally,” he said, noting the importance of involving law enforcement and first responders in the decision-making process.
Pollitt said that in his years of experience, needing law enforcement’s involvement “is very rare.”
Board member Heath Freeman said he supports the district’s intent with the program but also raised concern about being able to afford staffing for it.
In response, district officials said they went to the “top of the scale” for insurance and competitive salaries.
Pollitt said “most likely” the role would be filled by a veteran special education teacher who can handle leading the therapeutic day school with autonomy.
“And will really push this program forward,” he added.
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