Governor Tom Wolf signed legislation July 8 allowing special education students who turned 21 during the 20-2022 school year, or during the summer of 2022, to attend school for one more year. The reasoning for this is that the pandemic school closures have had a profound negative effect on special education students’ learning retention. This is the same legislation that was put in place last year, except last year was Act 66, and this year is Act 55.

Parents will have until Aug. 1 to sign paperwork allowing their daughters or sons to return. Some students have already been placed in day programs or similar arrangements. But others will return to school for one more year.

Christopher Wolfel, director of Colonial Intermediate Unit 20, says the IU will be ready for the students’ return.

“We will be working with all the school districts or any family that wishes to have their child return for another year,” he said. “We will do our best to accommodate all the students.”

He added that it’s too early to tell if additional classrooms will be needed. The IU will try to keep returning students with their teachers from the prior years.

“Certainly, we will want to give preference to the students returning with their teacher from last year and do our best to accommodate them,” Wolfelsaid said.