Wellesley Public Schools: Fiscal Year 2026 Budget
Special Education: Special Education services are provided to eligible children from age 3 through age 22. Wellesley has a strong inclusion model that seeks to educate special education students in the least restrictive environment (LRE), such as in the same classrooms as their peers. General education and special education teachers collaborate to ensure the success of inclusion throughout the district. Wellesley has a robust range of in-district programs serving students at all age levels. These programs include:
Integrated Pre-School o
•
Six classrooms at the PAWS Building
o Three classrooms at Sprague Elementary School • Language Based Programs serving language-based disabilities: o Schofield: Grades 3-5 o Wellesley Middle School: Grades 6-8 o Wellesley High School: Grades 9-12 • Therapeutic Learning Center (TLC) Programs serving emotional disabilities: o Hunnewell: Grades K-5
o Wellesley Middle School: Grades 6-8 o Wellesley High School: Grades 9-12
• Skills Programs serving autism spectrum disorders: o Hardy: Grades K-5 o Wellesley Middle School: Grades 6-8 o
Wellesley High School: Grades 9-12 (including developmental disabilities)
• Integrated Specialized Services (ISS) serving developmental disabilities: o Sprague: Grades K-5 o Wellesley Middle School: Grades 6-8 • Launch Program serving the age 18-22 students (Transition Program): o Wellesley Community Center
In some cases, Wellesley is unable to create a suitable program and must seek an outside placement for a student. Tuition rates for the out-of-district (OOD) placements are determined by the Massachusetts Executive Office for Administration and Finance, Operational Services Division, Special Education Pricing unit. These rates are set annually and are outside of the district’s control. OOD in-state placement costs for fiscal year 2025 range from $39K to $256K annually for day programs and $95K to $504K annually for residential programs. Managing a special education budget is challenging and complex as students move in and out of the district and individual needs change. The table rank is based on the table data not statewide data.
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