Massachusetts autistic students wrongly placed at Shrub Oak International School

What Carlson didn’t know at the time, but would eventually come to learn, was that Matthew should never have been sent to Shrub Oak in the first place.

Shrub Oak mistakenly was on a list of approved out-of-state special-education schools by Massachusetts’ education department, assuring families the facility was safe to send their children. Matthew’s experience, along with that of at least six other Massachusetts children, again calls into question the state’s vetting process for schools tasked with educating its most vulnerable students.

A 2023 Globe Spotlight Team investigation found rampant abuse and neglect at licensed residential schools within Massachusetts serving children who, like Matthew, have severe autism. All the while, residential schools receive large tuition checks paid for by taxpayers. At Shrub Oak, tuition last year for a single residential student was more than $300,000 — with costs topping more than $500,000 for students who required a dedicated aide.

Parents such as Carlson, who have agonized over sending their children away for school, say they want answers.

“We’ve never received any apology or explanation,” she said.

Matthew, now 20, was diagnosed with autism at 18 months old. His local district, Uxbridge Public Schools, enrolled him at Shrub Oak for the 2022-23 school year through an out-of-district placement. Such placements are a common practice in educating hard-to-teach special-education students. Districts typically do so under the condition of state approval, especially when private schools are located out of state and, thus, more difficult to monitor.

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, under the previous administration, initially granted temporary approval to Shrub Oak in the spring of 2022.

By its own rules, it never should have done so.

That’s because Massachusetts regulations say out-of-state special-education schools can only receive the department’s backing if they’ve received approval in their home states. New York had not approved Shrub Oak then, nor has it now.

“Who’s responsible? Who’s held accountable?” asked Roberta Biscan, a Wilmington resident, whose son, Connor, enrolled at Shrub Oak in July 2023. (Connor was previously profiled by the Globe.)

When questioned by the Globe, a spokesperson for the Massachusetts education department did not explain how the Shrub Oak error was made but said the department has since “enhanced its oversight of the out-of-state program approval process, including adding an additional layer of review, to see that this does not happen again.”

For its part, a representative from Shrub Oak said in an email that the Massachusetts education department “was aware that we were not approved in [New York] and asked us to provide documentation on our accreditations, which we did.”

Biscan first became concerned with Shrub Oak’s ability to serve her son when it would not craft an individualized education program, or IEP, which details a special-education student’s specific needs and goals. Her worries grew as Connor was repeatedly physically restrained by school staff, she said.

Then, doing her own research, Biscan discovered that Shrub Oak hadn’t been approved by New York, a fact she said she presented to federal authorities in October 2023. Shortly after, the Massachusetts education department sent officials there on a site visit, Biscan said. By the end of November, the department issued a letter to Shrub Oak saying, in part, “It has come to DESE’s attention that [Shrub Oak] does not have the required approval from its host state.”

The department then removed Shrub Oak from its list of approved schools and directed local districts to find new placements for their students by June 30, 2024.

Six months later, ProPublica would publish a multipart investigation detailing accusations of possible abuse and neglect at the boarding school, including unexplained bruises on students’ bodies. (Shrub Oak denies the allegations.)

Massachusetts has long been a leader for autistic students, Biscan said, and knowing Shrub Oak had received the state’s approval gave her assurance that Connor would be treated well there.

“It gave me comfort knowing that this school would be required to follow all of the Mass. regulations, and then there would be oversight by the department of education. Otherwise I would not even for a second consider sending my son,” she said.

“Someone dropped the ball, and it’s not OK,” Biscan added.

In a statement, state Senator Jason Lewis, chairperson of the Joint Committee on Education, said he was “very concerned” to hear about accusations of abuse and neglect at Shrub Oak.

“Massachusetts public school students should not have been sent there without the school receiving proper approval from the New York State Education Department,” Lewis said. “I am glad that the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has acted to remove Massachusetts students from the school, and I expect that DESE will continue to take all necessary steps to ensure that every student, especially those with autism and with intellectual and developmental disabilities, receives a safe and high-quality education.”

According to the education department spokesperson, the agency, after discovering its error, conducted enhanced monitoring of Shrub Oak through the remainder of last school year related to the “health, safety, and educational needs of all Massachusetts publicly funded students.”

The department did not answer a Globe question about whether former Shrub Oak students should receive state-funded services to compensate for instructional time lost while attending Shrub Oak. Both Carlson and Biscan have filed complaints with the state’s Problem Resolution System against the department, seeking compensatory services for their children; they are awaiting responses.

The Shrub Oak representative said the school will try again to obtain Massachusetts’ approval.

“We have a good relationship with the education department and will absolutely reapply as soon as we obtain our [New York] approval, which we are currently working on,” the email said.

Matthew and Connor have both found new schools.

But at least one Massachusetts student remains at Shrub Oak.

Shu-Chiung Chou, of Westford, said her 20-year-old daughter, Yenchu Chen, has had severe regression since starting at the school in 2020, including a backslide in her ability to toilet herself. Yenchu, who has multiple disabilities including autism and cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome, also endured at least two serious injuries since starting at Shrub Oak, including a laceration on her face, which has left a scar, Chou said.

Yenchu remains at Shrub Oak because Westford Public Schools has been unable to find her another placement, Chou said. Even though Yenchu isn’t verbal, the pair FaceTime every night.

“I need to physically eyeball her to see she’s OK,” Chou said.

The Great Divide team explores educational inequality in Boston and statewide. Sign up to receive our newsletter, and send ideas and tips to [email protected].

Mandy McLaren can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her @mandy_mclaren.