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Weisman USD special education caseload hits record levels; district hires specialists and aims to convert agency aides
Summary
The district's special education director reported an increase to 419 eligible students and a rise in students with intensive needs. The district has hired additional special-education teachers, RBTs and instructional aides, and outlined plans to increase in-house staffing and BCBA supervision to reduce contracted costs.
Kim (Director of Special Education) told the Weisman Unified School District board on Sept. 9 that the district ended the prior year with 419 students eligible for special education services, the highest total on record. She said the special-education population rose about 5% during the prior year and that the number of students with extensive support needs doubled.
"You know, that's significant. We're a small district, but that's significant in any district," Kim said, recounting staff hires and program adjustments over the past year.
Why it matters: rising special-education numbers increase staffing needs, specialized services (speech, occupational therapy, behavior support) and budgetary pressure. Kim said the district has been trying to reduce agency spending by hiring district employees for in-class supports.
What the district reported: - Staffing additions: the district hired five new special-education teachers and one occupational therapist; it added 13 instructional aides and 11 registered behavior technicians (RBTs) as district employees during the last year. As of the start of 202526#8211;26, the district reported roughly 17 district-employed RBTs and further IA hires pending. (Kim) - Dedicated adult supports: Kim presented data showing the number of students requiring full-time adult support increased markedly and that the district used both internal staff and contracted agency aides. She said the district's goal is to raise the share of IAs and RBTs who are district employees to 75% in 202526#8211;26; the baseline cited was 52%. (Kim) - Supervision and training: the district proposed adding a part-time BCBA (Board Certified Behavior Analyst) to provide supervision and adding psych interns to support assessments. Kim said additional BCBA supervision is necessary because RBTs require clinical oversight to maintain certification. (Kim) - Compliance and process: Kim said the district improved compliance and administrative capacity, noting the SELPA found no actionable problems in the districtsubmissions this year. She described the departmenteffort to move from reactive to more proactive staffing, training and program planning. (Kim)
Next steps and concerns: Kim asked for continued focus on hiring and retention and said the department will pursue measures to reduce contracted costs by about $500,000 through internal hiring and tighter position control. She also described plans for three parent-engagement events, a Friendship Foundation peer-support partnership and continued collaboration with the SELPA and site teams.
Board members praised the department for progress while emphasizing the need for more behavior support, BCBA supervision, and ongoing cross-department planning to budget for the growing caseload.
