The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Social worker: Students are at risk
Complaint to state Board of Education sparked investigation
TORRINGTON — Special needs students allegedly are being restrained and put in seclusion regularly by employees of EdAdvance, the regional education consortium in Litchfield County.
Those charges are contained in a 35-page affidavit filed with the state Board of Education by former EdAdvance social worker Heather LaSelle.
An accompanying document, filed by her attorney Andrew Feinstein, petitions the state board for “Removal of State Funding of Special Education Services provided by Torrington (school district) and EdAdvance.”
LaSelle’s filing triggered an investigation by the state board, which began earlier this month.
“Seeing these practices, (LaSelle) filed with the state and insisted they do something,” Feinstein said.
“Schools have become extremely closed off to the public” for school safety reasons, LaSelle said Wednesday. “In many ways it creates an institution of secrecy.”
She supervised two programs with EdAdvance which are cited in her affidavit: ACCESS North, and the Torrington Alternative Program, or TAP. They operated under contract with the Torrington School District to provide services for special education students.
“The allegations contained in Heather LaSelle’s sworn affidavit are revolting,” Feinstein said in his filing to the state board.
LaSelle worked for the state Department of Children and Families for more than a decade.
“I had access to situations where abuse occurred. I’m very statutorily aware (of actions that are not lawful),” she said.
She noted that once she filed the affidavit, teachers and administrators from around the state have echoed her concerns.
“The physical restraints rise to the level of putting a face against a wall or a face on the floor,” LaSelle said. “It’s systemic throughout schools.”
The state board “has the power to take over the school district and run it themselves,” based on their findings, Feinstein said. Federal law requires schools to comply with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, he said.
But, Feinstein said, it’s
more likely they will order corrective actions. “They would tell (the Torrington Board of Education) to do this, this and this,” he said.
The ACCESS North program is less than two years old, according to EdAdvance’s website. Its 2018 annual report states that the company expanded its programs “to meet the growing need for costeffective solutions and quality programs for students with specialized needs.”
The 2018-19 student/ parent handbook, for both ACCESS North and TAP, states that its mission “is to provide specialized educational, therapeutic, and diagnostic services for 6-12 (grade) students to support each student in developing the skills and attributes needed for personal and academic success.”
Both of the 22-page handbooks contain 29 references
to bullying and 10 for physical restraint.
“It’s about confining,” LeSalle said. “It’s the school-to-prison pipeline.” She said about 50 students are enrolled in the two programs.
“These are impoverished, black and brown kids. Their parents can’t advocate for them,” she said.
Interviews by the state board began this week with parents whose children are enrolled in the program, Feinstein said.
He believes the investigation will take several months, but board spokesman Peter Yazbak said the complaint is expected to be finished by early February.
ACCESS North Director Jody Minotti, EdAdvance Executive Director Jonathan P. Costa Sr. and Torrington Superintendent of Schools Susan M. Lubomski did not respond to requests for comment.