Parent raises concern after Moses Y second-grade staff reduced; administrators cite board guidelines and enrollment monitoring

Roseanne Grow, a parent of a second-grade student at Moses Y, told the board she learned the second-grade cohort was reduced from five to four teachers after a teacher accepted another position in the district and that classrooms would average about 20 students. Grow asked the district to reconsider class sizes for kindergarten through second grade or provide a shared paraprofessional to support younger learners. Assistant Superintendent Latour responded that district board guidelines set class-size limits of up to 21 students for kindergarten through second grade and up to 23 for grades three through five. She said the district monitors enrollment weekly and adjusted staffing this summer to keep classes equitable across schools and to avoid hiring new staff who might face layoff if numbers declined. Latour said the district had openings over the summer and moved existing staff where feasible after consulting the teachers union. Board members asked specifically whether paraprofessionals (instructional aides) would be assigned to the affected second-grade classroom. Latour said the district assigns one-to-one instructional pairs in kindergarten and arranges instructional aides based on building schedules and student needs; special-education paraprofessionals required by IEPs are provided. She said she would follow up with specifics for Moses Y and recommended a conversation between the parent and the principal to discuss classroom plans and supports. No formal board action was taken. The parent said her son’s grades declined in the larger class without additional paraprofessional support and asked the district to prioritize younger learners’ class size from a research-informed perspective.