Committee will examine special ed staffing needs; Undetermined number of parapro cuts still coming

     Valley View School District 365U administrators say they still have some work to do before they know the exact number of supported education parapro positions that will be cut from the 2010-11 budget.
     District officials have said several times they expect to trim some parapros (aides) following a review of the current and future staffing needs. That review can’t take place until after the annual assessment of special education student needs which is taking place now.
     Sharon Hawks, Executive Director of Human Resources for Valley View, told the Board of Education Monday night that she will ask them to authorize a reduction-in-force notice to all first, second and third year parapros at the board’s March 22 meeting with the intent of reducing an undetermined number of parapros specifically in the supported education field.
     Hawks said because initial estimates indicated the reduction number could be somewhere around 42, the RIF into third year parapros is necessary because there are only 32 first and second year supported education parapros.
     Assistant Superintendent Faith Dahlquist and David Hehl, Executive Director of Student Services, have repeatedly said that the number of supported education parapros in the district can be reduced without any effect on the district’s special needs students.
     “We plan on using our parapros more efficiently to better serve our special education students,” Hehl told the board.
Dahlquist detailed a plan to create a committee to review the restructuring process of special education staff, including re-allocation and coordination of staff to assist Student Resource Teams at the elementary school level, which is a goal of board member Richard Gougis.
     “My concern has always been with our entire special education strategy. We’re very piecemeal with this. It lacks a framework,” Gougis said before voting against the administration’s entire budget cut package. “We’re struggling with our students with IEPs and we’re going to cut parapros?”
     “How do you explain to a parent whose student has had a one-on-one aide that they won’t have anymore?” asked board member Jim Curran, who also voted against the budget cut package.
     “We’re not looking at cutting one-on-one parapros,” Dahlquist responded.
     Dahlquist not only promised to bring recommendations back to the board in May but also indicated a monitoring system would be put in place by August to make sure the new plans are functioning as expected.