Updated
Specialized Education is a Service, Not a Place
At one Manteca Unified elementary school, a 4th grader we’ll call Jerome is right where he belongs – sitting beside his peers in his general education classroom, raising his hand during English lessons. Just months ago, Jerome may have spent most of his school day in a separate classroom, away from the energy, rigor, and relationships found in his grade-level environment. Today, thanks to a renewed vision for inclusive instruction, Jerome’s story is becoming the new norm.
This school year, Manteca Unified’s Special Education Department has made powerful strides in their mission to ensure that every student who receives specialized services has access to a meaningful, inclusive learning experience. Across the district, approximately 3,500 students receive specialized education services. Historically, many of these students were placed in separate classrooms for the majority of their school day. But research tells us that when students are not surrounded by peers performing at higher academic levels, their growth is hindered.
Educational leaders at the state and federal levels have made it clear: schools must do more to integrate students with specialized needs into general education settings whenever possible. While we are still in Phase 1 of a three-year implementation plan, early data points to significant progress: the number of Manteca Unified students who spend at least 80% of their day in general education classrooms rose from 38% to 50% in just one semester, a shift which positively affects hundreds of children.
“In inclusive instruction, all means all,” shared Dr. Jody Burriss, Manteca Unified’s Senior Director of Special Education. “All children receive services from school, not just children who receive specialized services. So, we believe in seeing all children as students first, not categorized by their needs. And all students have a right to have a presence in the general education classroom.”
"In inclusive instruction, all means all. All students are general education students first.”
To make that vision a reality, Dr. Burriss and her team partnered with principals across the district. Together with teachers, they began the thoughtful, student-by-student process of reviewing Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) and identifying ways to keep students in their general education classrooms for more of the day while still ensuring they receive the personalized support they need to thrive.
For Jerome, that means receiving targeted support in English without being pulled out for the entire day. For others, it may mean adjusting how and when specialized instruction is delivered. And next year, for some high schoolers, it will mean experiencing a powerful new co-teaching model. One Manteca Unified high school will adopt this approach in 9th and 10th grade English and math classrooms, where general education teachers and Education Specialists (commonly referred to as “Special Education teachers”) work side-by-side to design instruction that benefits all learners.
This model represents the heart of a growing movement in MUSD – one that treats specialized education not as a place to go, but as a service to support student success.
Inclusive education is no longer a distant goal; it’s becoming a reality. Manteca Unified is redefining specialized education as a support, not a separate place, woven into the structure of every classroom. As this work continues, more students will learn alongside their peers, and more educators will be equipped to support all learners – right where they are.
- Emerging Students