Wisconsin Educational Services Program for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Department of Public Instruction
March 2006
Report Highlights
The Department of Public Instruction (DPI) administers the Wisconsin
Educational Services Program for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, which
was created by 2001 Wisconsin Act 57. In fiscal year (FY) 2004-05, the
program had 135.6 authorized full-time equivalent (FTE) positions and
$11.0 million in expenditures.
The program makes free residential education available to state residents
from 3 to 21 years old who are deaf or hard of hearing and provides
outreach services such as consultation, training, and mentoring to school
districts, students who are deaf or hard of hearing, and their families.
In addition, the Wisconsin School for the Deaf in Delevan offers a
summer program.
Act 57 directed the Legislative Audit Bureau to conduct a performance
evaluation of the program during FY 2005-06. To assess overall program
performance and determine the extent to which DPI has implemented
statutory changes, we analyzed:
program expenditures from FY 2000-01 through FY 2004-05;
changes in staffing levels;
enrollment trends at the school; and
the extent to which outreach services have been expanded, and the
types of services provided.
Program Expenditures
Program expenditures increased
moderately from $10.0 million in
FY 2000-01 to $11.0 million in
FY 2004-05, primarily because of
expanded statewide outreach efforts.
In FY 2004-05, spending for outreach
services was $1.1 million. However,
at $9.9 million, residential school
expenditures continued to represent
the majority of the program’s costs.
Program Expenditures FY 2004-05
Wisconsin School for the Deaf
During the 2004-05 school year,
6.3 percent of the 2,252 Wisconsin
students who were identified as
deaf or hard of hearing and were
receiving special education services
attended the Wisconsin School for
the Deaf.
Enrollment at the residential school
has declined in recent years, from
165 students in the 2000-01 school
year to 142 students in the 2004-05
school year. Both instructional
and residential staffing at the
school have also declined, from
97.7 authorized FTE positions in
January 2001 to 91.0 authorized
FTE positions in September 2005.
In contrast, outreach services have
increased, and the number of authorized
outreach positions increased
from 4.0 FTE in January 2001 to
11.0 FTE in September 2005.
Students are placed in the residential
school when an individualized
education program (IEP) developed
according to state and federal
requirements deems it appropriate.
The IEPs of nearly 80 percent of
students who currently attend the
school list more than one disability.
A speech or language disability is
the most prevalent after hearing
disabilities.
Although the majority of its courses
cover subjects similar to those provided
by schools in local districts,
the school’s courses are taught by
staff using American Sign Language.
In addition, some students with
significant disabilities attend ungraded
classes that are specifically
designed to meet their special needs.
Most of the school’s students enroll
for the full school year. Fifty students,
or 35.2 percent, commuted daily
from nearby communities in the
2004-05 school year. The remaining
92 students stayed at the residence
hall during the week and were
transported home on weekends.
Because enrollment has declined
faster than staffing levels, the
number of teachers exceeds the
levels recommended under the
school’s guidelines. For example, in
the 2005-06 school year, the school is
serving 3.9 elementary students per
classroom teacher, which is less than
the 6.0 students its guidelines recommend.
It is also serving fewer than
one-half of the high school–level
students per classroom teacher that
its guidelines suggest. Given enrollment
trends and staffing levels, we
include a recommendation for DPI
to monitor classroom staffing ratios.
The school also offers a summer
program for students who are deaf
or hard of hearing, as required by
Act 57. Enrollment increased markedly
in the summer program’s first
two years, from 84 students in the
summer of 2004 to 130 students
in 2005.
A goal of the summer program is to
provide an opportunity for students
who otherwise do not attend the
school to interact with peers using
American Sign Language. Summer
program enrollment for these
students increased by 29 students
from 2004 to 2005.
Outreach Services
As intended by Act 57, the quantity
and the types of services provided
by outreach staff have increased.
Outreach expenditures more than
quadrupled from FY 2000-01, when
they were $248,800, to FY 2004-05,
when they were $1.1 million.
In FY 2004-05, outreach staff provided:
consultations with educational
staff regarding 64 students in
47 local school districts who
are deaf or hard of hearing, and
2 children in Birth to 3 programs;
conferences and training sessions
for more than 300 local educational
professionals and others;
mentoring services that
included in-home guidance in
visual communication and sign
language for 56 families, and
support from trained parent
guides for 35 families with
children newly identified as
deaf or hard of hearing;
distance learning courses in
American Sign Language for
75 hearing high school students
in nine southeastern Wisconsin
schools; and
free captioned media materials
for 1,425 registered users in
Wisconsin.
Future Considerations
As allowed by Act 57, the program has broadened its focus from primarily serving students at the residential school to also providing
outreach services statewide to students who are deaf or hard of hearing. However, we believe existing outreach services should be
broadened as outlined in the program’s current strategic plan.
Although there is an interest among the parents of students who are deaf or hard of hearing in receiving instruction in American Sign
Language, the program has not yet expanded its distance learning courses beyond those offered to hearing high school students in
southeastern Wisconsin.
Recommendations
Our recommendations address the need for DPI to:
monitor the school’s classroom staffing ratios
(p. 31) and
increase technological resources to provide additional distance learning courses statewide
(p. 46).