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A new school system report highlights a persistent disparity throughout the county: Black students are deemed mentally retarded or emotionally disturbed more often than their white, Hispanic and Asian-American peers.

The report, released Monday, also found that black students with disabilities are more likely than any other subgroup to be taught in separate educational settings, such as a secondary learning center, or suspended from school for 10 days or more.

The report's findings aren't unique to the Montgomery County school system, the state's largest district with some 140,000 students in 200 schools. Rather, school systems throughout the country have grappled for years with the disparities.

"This is a national issue," Deputy Superintendent Frieda K. Lacey said Tuesday. "If you talk to school districts across the country, you will see that they all are struggling with this issue."

The county school system this year had 32,172 black students, or 23 percent of the total enrollment, but they accounted for 36 percent of all students identified as mentally retarded, the most of any subgroup, researchers wrote in the report.

Conversely, the county's white students made up 32 percent, and Hispanic students made up 21 percent of all students identified as mentally retarded. The county's Asian-American population made up 10 percent — 67 students — of all students identified as mentally retarded, according to the report. All told, the school system identified 646 students as mentally retarded, according to the report.

A total of 273 black students were identified as emotionally disturbed, which represented 43 percent of all students in that category. White students made up 41 percent, and Hispanic students accounted for 11 percent of students deemed emotionally disturbed. Asian-Americans were 4 percent of students in that category.

As for learning disabilities, black and white students each made up 32 percent of county students identified, while Hispanic students made up 31 percent of students with learning disabilities, according to the data. Asian-Americans made up 4 percent of all students identified with a learning disability.

"I think the report does a great job of delineating an action plan," Lacey said. "We're putting the data out there, and we're letting folks see the issues associated with it."

During the 2007-2008 school year, the county's black students with disabilities made up 44 percent of all students who were suspended 10 days or more. Hispanic students made up 35 percent of those suspended, and white students made up 17 percent, the data show.

The school system established a committee to look into the factors that have led to the disproportionate numbers. The group also looked into the system's policies and practices that might have led to the numbers. The committee found that cultural differences between teachers and students were a factor, according to the report.

Also in the report, researchers found that previous efforts to narrow the gap did not work. Therefore, actions to lower the disparity should be monitored at the local school level, according to the report.

To erase the disparity in the numbers, the report recommends that the school system provide more professional development to increase cultural understanding, implement different levels of instructional support in general education classrooms and do a better job of holding school administrators accountable for reducing the disparity.

Black students have been identified more than other students for special education for at least 30 years, said school board member Judith R. Docca, a former county principal.

In 1978, the school board approved a comprehensive plan to narrow disparities between black and white students.

"We're in 2009 and still working on these issues," said Docca (Dist. 1) of Montgomery Village. Progress is being made through the advent of early childhood programs and smaller class sizes, she said.

The school board has not issued a timetable for when it wants to see results.