Transcript [pdf]

SHOW NOTES

What This Episode Is About

Many school leaders say, “We believe in inclusion.”

But when you look closely at schedules, service delivery, staffing, and daily practices, the system often tells a different story.

In this episode, Julie and Kristie share 7 clear indicators that reveal whether a school or district is truly inclusive, or just trying to be.

If you are:

• • A school or district leader working toward inclusion
  • Reviewing your LRE data or service delivery model
  • Seeing inconsistencies across classrooms or schools
  • Feeling like your system “believes in inclusion” but isn’t fully there yet

This episode helps you identify where your system is aligned, and where it’s not.

Three Moves That Actually Shift Systems

1. 1. Get painfully clear on what inclusion means (in practice)
      If your team defines inclusion differently, decisions will always be inconsistent.

This week, ask:

• Where do students learn?
• Who do they learn with?
• How is support delivered?

Write it down. Use it. Hold decisions against it.

1. 2. Audit access — not just placement
      “Inclusion” isn’t where students are assigned. It’s where they actually show up.

Pick one area this month (course, activity, or program) and ask:

• Who is missing?
• Why are they missing?
• What would it take to include them?

Fix one area. Make it visible.

1. 3. Interrupt patterns rooted in ableism and racism
      Many systems still reflect assumptions about who can handle rigor, who belongs in certain spaces, and who needs to be “somewhere else.”

In your next leadership meeting, name this directly and take action:

• • Which students are we still not including, and why?
  • Are our decisions influenced by assumptions about disability, behavior, race, or perceived capability?
  • What would it look like to presume competence and belonging for every student?

Then act on it:

• • Expand access to advanced coursework
  • Eliminate label-based placements
  • Redesign supports so they follow students — not separate them

Key Takeaways

• • Inclusion is not a program, classroom, or percentage, it’s a system-wide commitment.
  • If leaders cannot define inclusion consistently, implementation will be inconsistent.
  • Access to general education, peers, and curriculum is a core indicator of inclusion.
  • Systems often unintentionally reveal their priorities through schedules, staffing, and placement decisions.
  • Inclusion must be stable, even when challenges arise, not something that disappears under pressure.

Additional Resources 

Definition of Inclusion: This resource defines inclusive related services as supports that are seamlessly embedded within general education environments, rather than delivered in isolation or through pull-out models. It emphasizes collaboration among educators, specialists, and families to ensure services are responsive to individual student needs while promoting access, participation, and belonging. By reframing related services as integrated, flexible, and student-centered, the document supports a shift toward more inclusive systems where all students learn and receive support alongside their peers.

Inclusion Podcast Episode 31- Understanding LRE and its Role in Supporting All Learners: This episode unpacks the concept of Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) and its essential role in fostering truly inclusive classrooms, emphasizing that students with disabilities should be educated alongside their non-disabled peers whenever possible. Through real stories and practical strategies, the hosts explore how schools can thoughtfully use supports and services before considering more restrictive placements, reframing challenging behaviors as opportunities for growth rather than exclusion. Listeners will come away with actionable insights for implementing LRE principles in their own educational settings and a free checklist of supplementary aids to support all learners. 

Why are we Still Segregating Students?: The short video highlights ongoing inequities in educational placement for students with disabilities, questioning why many are still separated from their peers despite inclusive education mandates. It emphasizes the moral and legal responsibility of schools to provide equitable learning opportunities in general education settings whenever appropriate. This message directly relates to the principle of Least Restrictive Environment (LRE), which requires that students with disabilities be educated alongside their nondisabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate, promoting inclusion over segregation.

Inclusion Podcast Episode 63- We’re Doing Breaks Wrong  — And It’s Backfiring: This piece challenges the common practice of sending students out of the classroom for “breaks,” highlighting how these well-intentioned strategies can unintentionally reduce access to learning and reinforce patterns of escape. It encourages educators to rethink breaks as opportunities for regulation that happen within the learning environment, rather than away from it. The resource offers practical, inclusive alternatives (such as movement, sensory tools, and whole-class supports) that help students stay connected while meeting their needs. By shifting from removal to in-the-moment support, educators can build students’ long-term capacity for regulation and belonging. 

Inclusion Podcast Episode 64- A Para is Not an Environment: Clearing up the LRE Confusion: This resource reexamines a widely held misunderstanding in special education — that the presence of a paraprofessional defines a student’s placement — by clarifying that a person is not an “environment.” It emphasizes that Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) decisions should be based on where students have the greatest access to peers and grade-level curriculum, not on the level of support they need. The piece encourages teams to separate placement from support decisions and to bring services to students, rather than moving students to match available supports. By reframing paraprofessionals as flexible, in-class supports rather than reasons for removal, it helps educators make more inclusive, legally aligned, and student-centered decisions.

3 Reasons Why We Won’t Be Hiring More Paraprofessionals: This resource examines why hiring additional paraprofessionals, while often well-intentioned, may not lead to better outcomes for students or schools. Drawing on decades of research, it highlights unintended consequences such as reduced teacher engagement, increased student dependence, and diminished opportunities for peer connection and belonging. Rather than relying on more adult proximity as a solution, the piece encourages schools to address deeper instructional and systemic challenges through collaboration, training, and more inclusive practices. By shifting the focus from adding staff to strengthening systems, it offers a more sustainable path toward meaningful inclusion.

Leading Inclusive Systems Change: Practical Moves for Resistance & Momentum: This resource offers school leaders practical, actionable moves for navigating resistance and building momentum during inclusive systems change. It emphasizes that resistance is a natural and expected part of the process, and provides strategies to support educators through discomfort while keeping progress moving forward. By focusing on clarity, small wins, and intentional leadership actions, the guide helps teams shift from hesitation to engagement and shared ownership of inclusion. Ultimately, it supports leaders in creating sustainable change by aligning vision, supporting people, and steadily building a culture where inclusion can thrive.

The Way to Inclusion: This book is a practical, research-based guide that supports school leaders in creating systems where every student truly belongs. The book walks readers through a clear, step-by-step process for inclusive change, including defining a shared vision, examining current practices, and redesigning structures and roles to better serve all learners. Grounded in real examples, tools, and actionable strategies, it helps teams move beyond intention to implementation with confidence. By focusing on leadership, collaboration, and equity, this resource empowers schools to build sustainable, inclusive environments where all students can thrive.