The John Glenn School Board was updated on status of the dissolution of the JESSE program at a recent school board meeting.
Superintendent Christopher Winchell informed board members that he had formally submitted a letter to the JESSE office on behalf of John Glenn that the corporation would be dissolving out of the program at the end of the 2023-2024 school year. John Glenn School Corporation will continue to use JESSE services through the end of next year, but after that they will begin providing its own Special Education services or create a partnership with another school for the 2024-2025 school year and in upcoming years.
About $300,000 a year is spent in the JESSE program which staffs about 25 employees that help provide school systems with Special Education services. Winchell said that if John Glenn is to absorb its own Special Education services, the corporation will have to anticipate hiring its own highly trained Special Education staff. Operational and office staff will be needed to help with the extra documentation and funds. They will also take on a lot more reports, auditing, and keep up on Federal and State guidelines which were handled by the JESSE program.
While resources are being saved by dissolving the program, this money will likely be re-absorbed right back in to the new Special Education program.
As of now, the John Glenn School Corporation is still weighing the options of having its own program or partnering with Union-North United Schools.
