A disability rights watchdog group closes investigation into child abuse at Jamison Elementary, citing improvements

A disability watchdog group has closed its investigation into child abuse in the autistic support program at a Central Bucks elementary school.

The group, Disability Rights PA, published an April 2025 report finding that students were abused at Jamison Elementary School and administrators failed to adequately investigate, setting off a firestorm of district investigations, terminations, and lawsuits. The group visited the elementary school in November and noticed improvements to district practices, policies, and personnel, according to a Dec. 19 letter from Andrew Favini, the organization’s staff attorney, to Central Bucks officials. They then closed the investigation.

In the wake of the initial Disability Rights report, Central Bucks fired former Superintendent Steven Yanni and former Jamison principal David Heineman. Gabrielle McDaniel and Rachel Aussprung, the teacher and education assistant in the classroom who allegedly abused students, have also been terminated, the district said.

During the November visit, Disability Rights PA found “no new reports of abuse and neglect” after conducting interviews with district staff that teach in or provide support to autistic support classrooms, according to the letter.

The organization also interviewed new Jamison principal Lauren Dowd and assistant principal Dave Filson, who, according to Favini, appeared “earnest and sincere.” The administrators shared that they spent “significant time” in the autistic support classrooms and that there is new training on mandatory reporting for child abuse and using restraints in classrooms.

“The changes presented to DRP during the November 21, 2025, visit were substantial and emphasized a focus and dedication to improving the autistic support programs,” Favini wrote in the letter.

A spokesperson for Central Bucks also said the district’s pupil services program will be audited by the Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement at the University of Minnesota.

The evaluation will, among other things, identify areas for improvement and will focus on staffing, student outcomes, and conformity with state regulations, the spokesperson said.

“The district and school board are committed to continuous improvement and pursuing and implementing multiple strategies to support this effort in all areas,” interim Superintendent Charles Malone said in a statement Monday.

The April Disability Rights PA report found that McDaniel and Aussprung illegally restrained students in an autistic support classroom and did not report the use of restraints to the Pennsylvania Department of Education. They noted that students also observed or experienced demeaning treatment, nudity, and neglect.

Room 119, the center of Disability Rights PA’s investigation, is no longer being used as an autistic support classroom at Jamison, Favini wrote in his letter. The class that would typically be in 119 has been relocated to another nearby room that administrators can more directly access.

While the disability rights watchdog has closed its investigation, Favini noted in the letter that the district must continue to amend necessary policies and “support its staff with heightened awareness of the District’s history.”

“As always, even though the investigation is closed, DRP will remain vigilant regarding reports of abuse within Central Bucks School District; we anticipate the District will do the same,” Favini wrote.

Both Yanni and Heineman have appealed their terminations. Alyssa Wright, the district’s former director of pupil services whom Yanni and Heineman pointed fingers at during their public termination hearing in August, has sued the district and eight school board members, alleging that she was a whistleblower who was scapegoated.

Yanni’s appeal in Bucks County Court of Common Pleas and Wright’s federal lawsuit are still pending, while the state Department of Education has not yet made a decision in Heineman’s appeal.

Staff writer Abraham Gutman contributed to this report.