KSHB 41 reporter Olivia Acree covers portions of Johnson County, Kansas, including Olathe and Lenexa. Share your story idea with Olivia.
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Olathe, Blue Valley, De Soto, and Shawnee Mission school districts announced a funding coalition and their plans to pursue litigation against the state last week.
Kansas law requires the state to reimburse 92% of excess special education costs, but the legislature hasn't fully met that obligation since 2011.
For families like the Days of Shawnee Mission, the funding shortfall isn't an abstract policy debate — it's a daily reality.
Brooke Day's son Ford requires one-on-one support during the school day, a resource she said was hard-won.
"It was a long fight in order to get him where he needs to be," Day said. "He requires one on one support during the school day, and not a lot of schools have that option, because they don't have the paras, and they aren't in the budget, and I don't think people understand how important that role is."
Laura Berthoff, a special education teacher retiring after 31 years, taught Ford — and his older brother Damion more than 20 years before that.
"They were literally bookends for my career," Berthoff said.
Throughout all those years in special education, the small wins kept Berthoff teaching.
"Being able to talk with Damion, versus a four year old Damion, and now he's a 25 year old Damien, said Berthoff. "I feel a lot of pride that I played a small part in his life."
However, Berthoff says the funding crisis is taking a toll on students inside Kansas classrooms.
"It's very sad for me to see that happening. These students, special needs students — they are students as well, and they deserve the funding. They shouldn't get jilted like that," Berthoff said.
When the four districts announced their plans to pursue litigation, Berthoff said the move was long overdue.
"I hope that it'll open their eyes up, you know, the state, and say, okay, we're not doing right by these children that have disabilities," Berthoff said.
The districts hope the legal action will help Kansas schools secure adequate special and general education funding.
The Kansas Education Funding Task Force will hold a public meeting Thursday, May 28, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Room 112N at the Capitol in Topeka.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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