Committee recommends restoring $1.3 million for kindergarten paraprofessionals, refers measure to full board

The Instructional Support Services Committee voted unanimously to refer to the full Board of Education a motion to restore $1,327,000 in funding for kindergarten paraprofessionals. The committee approved the referral after district leaders told members they had identified money within the current budget and were also seeking state grant support.

Superintendent Dr. Avery told the committee that after on-site visits to multiple kindergarten classrooms and discussions with teachers, district staff determined classroom conditions required additional paraprofessional support. “I think we found the $1,300,000 within our current budget in order to bring back all of the kindergarten paras,” Dr. Avery said during the meeting, and asked the board to schedule a special meeting so the district could move quickly to hire or reassign staff.

The move matters because committee members and teachers had raised concerns about increased student needs this year and the effect of the prior summer’s budget cuts that removed kindergarten paraprofessionals. Dr. Avery said the district originally cut the positions as part of a broader $1.3 million cost-saving plan adopted earlier in the summer and later concluded the students entering kindergarten this fall presented more intensive needs than expected.

At the meeting, Dr. Avery described steps the district took to identify funds, including reviewing grant line items, reducing projected substitute expenditures, and working with the grants office and finance staff to reallocate funds where possible. He said he had also requested permission from the state commissioner to use a $5,000,000 allotment that might cover part of the restoration but had not yet received a response.

Board members who spoke in the committee praised the administration’s work to locate funding but pressed for a public accounting of the internal reallocations. One member asked why the funding restoration was not handled over the summer; Dr. Avery answered that budget forecasts are built on prior-year patterns and that the district identified savings only after comparing current-year needs to projected substitute and agency costs.

The committee motion to restore full funding — moved by Albert Benahan Grajales and seconded by Andre Woodson — passed unanimously and was referred to the full board for approval. Chair Rob Traeger said he would confer with the board chair to call a special Zoom meeting "as quickly as possible" so hiring and implementation could begin.

If the full board approves, the administration said it would start implementation immediately, notify contracted agencies and vendors (including Delta/Kelly substitute arrangements noted in the presentation), and begin onboarding paraprofessionals to provide classroom support.

The committee also asked the administration to return with a short written plan showing sustainability steps, projected recurring costs, and how the restored positions will be staffed and monitored over the school year.