Equity-driven.
Research-backed.
District-ready.
Sandilands, Inc. partners with school districts identified as significantly disproportionate under IDEA. We bring doctoral-level research and an intersectional framework to address the systemic patterns that push students with disabilities into more restrictive placements and exclusionary discipline. Every engagement is tailored to the specific data and needs of each district — from professional development and consulting to compliance support. From root cause analysis to policy reform, the goal is always the same: measurably more equitable outcomes for every student.
Authorized under 34 C.F.R. § 300.646. Built on the Intersectional Response Framework.
With Sandilands, we'll give your district the research, framework, and strategy to address disproportionality head-on — and walk away with a concrete plan for lasting, equitable change.
Our Services
Root Cause Analysis & Disproportionality Review
We begin where the data begins. Sandilands conducts a comprehensive root cause analysis to identify the specific patterns driving disproportionality in your district — examining placement decisions, discipline practices, and referral trends through an intersectional lens. You walk away with a clear picture of what's happening and why.
Professional Development & Practitioner Training
Lasting change requires people who understand the work. Sandilands delivers targeted professional development for special education teams, administrators, and district leaders — built around your data, your students, and your specific compliance requirements. Three practitioner tracks available.
Compliance Support & Policy Reform
Being identified is the beginning, not the end. Sandilands guides districts through the full compliance process — from corrective action planning to policy and practice reform — ensuring that changes are not just documented, but implemented and sustained.
Why SandilandsWe help school districts identified as significantly disproportionate build a concrete, research-backed path to equity.
Disproportionality isn't just a compliance issue — it's a signal that something in the system isn't working for every student. Sandilands brings doctoral-level research, an intersectional framework, and hands-on district partnership to turn that signal into a plan. We don't just identify the problem. We help you solve it.
A framework built around every student's right to equity.
Every district that comes to Sandilands has already been identified. What they need isn't more paperwork — it's a partner who understands the data, knows the law, and has built a framework specifically designed to solve this problem. Dr. Yvette Lightbourn brings doctoral-level research and decades of special education experience to every engagement. Fill out the intake form today to see if Sandilands is the right fit for your district.
The Research Behind the WorkEvery student deserves an equitable path.
15%
Of IDEA Part B funds every identified district is federally required to set aside for this work — already allocated, waiting to be used.
80%
Of U.S. public school teachers identify as non-Hispanic White — while the students most impacted by disproportionality are overwhelmingly students of color.
Zero
Federal disproportionality reporting requires states to look at race. It requires them to look at disability. But no state is required to look at both together — alongside gender. That's the gap. That's what the Intersectional Response Framework was built to fill.