The Detroit Public Schools Community District is entering the 2025 -2026 school year with some changes to its special education department.

The district is increasing the total number of self-contained classrooms for Exceptional Student Education students, but officials are also cutting the number of schools where these resources are available by a third.

DPSCD says these changes to the program keep those students from having to go to a new school every couple of years, something parents say is a big adjustment for students with special needs. 

"My experience with Detroit Public Schools so far has been amazing. That just goes to the teachers and the staff," said parent Jeni Burns.

Burns says she has a 15, 13, and 8-year-old, all diagnosed on the autism spectrum. Two of them will be moving to different schools this year.

"My biggest concern is being understood. My worries are having someone who is just stuck in their ways, and would rather just plan than explain," she said.

Chan'Tel Stanton says she's concerned about whether the district will be able to fulfill her pre-k and kindergarten-aged daughters' individualized education program with so many students and teachers adjusting to new settings.

She says she's hoping the district has the right teachers and staff to work with students on the autism spectrum, like her daughters.

"They couldn't handle the IEPs before this upcoming school year. Bella was having incidents in school that weren't necessarily bad, but I guess the teacher felt overwhelmed or whatever the case may be," Stanton said.

DPSCD says they'll have 185 self-contained ESE classrooms this year, up from 174 last year. However, they'll only be available in 38 schools, down from 60 a year ago.

While that's leading to many school switches now, Superintendent Nikolai Vitti says that won't be the case going forward.

"This change, while at first might be disruptive, because a child might need to go to a new school, but long term, it means fewer schools that their child has to go to, a certified teacher, and more wraparound services at the individual school," he said.

He says the district will be more effective in fulfilling IEPs.

"I can guarantee that those IEPs will actually be fulfilled better with this change because we're going to have more resources at the self-contained schools, or where the self-contained classrooms are at," he said.

The changes also come as ESE enrollment reaches a post-pandemic high at Detroit Public Schools with nearly 600 new ESE students joining the district this year.