The State Department of Education was engaged coincidentally in a self-study on special education. Additionally, Connecticut has invested substantially in facilities where out-of district placements are made. The population of students identified for special education includes higher proportions of minority students and males than are found in the general student body. The label of serious emotional disturbance has been given to disproportionately high percentages of African-Americans and males. Boys and African-American students are somewhat more likely to be sent out of district than girls and white or Latino students.
Teenagers are much more likely to be sent out of district than elementary school students.
Students with labels of serious emotional disturbance, learning disabilities, and hearing disabilities were most likely to go out of district if they were older and from less wealthy towns. Students with mental retardation were more likely to be sent out when they were older, white, and male. Almost half the students sent out of district have labels of serious emotional disturbance. In comparison with other states, Connecticut has the third highest identification rate for special education students in the nation.