Multiple current and former classroom teachers and campus leaders addressed the Judson ISD Board of Trustees during the public comment period on Monday to argue against cutting academic trainers and elementary librarians.

Jasmine Watts, an English academic trainer at Judson High School, told the trustees she left classroom teaching to take the trainer role and said the position "was based on our previous classroom track record, our passion for teaching and consistent academic performance." Watts said the trainers "are the shoulders that teachers cry on" and told the board she was "beyond disheartened" by comments questioning trainers' effectiveness.

Millers Point Elementary principal Josh Ellis described the experimental impact of librarians and academic trainers on early literacy and instruction. "When academic trainers applied or in my case were pulled to fill these positions, it was based on our previous classroom track record," he said. "Tier 1 instruction is key to student success... I can guarantee that they would be worse if not for the hard work and dedication of our district's academic trainers."

Several other campus staff and parent advocates echoed the message: academic trainers, library specialists and the district's enrichment programs provide day-to-day support that principals and teachers rely on, they said.

In response to public comments and to additional data requests from trustees, the board announced it would postpone action on agenda item 7b (academic enrichment / librarians) and move the item to a specially posted meeting next Wednesday so staff could assemble more information. The board president instructed the secretary to repost the item and asked staff to provide clearer role descriptions and campus-level usage data.

Why this matters: The trainers and librarians are directly involved in instructional improvement, early-literacy work and teacher coaching on many campuses; cuts to those positions would change the support available to classroom teachers and could affect student instruction and campus operations.

Trustees requested additional details, including campus-by-campus descriptions of how trainers and librarians are assigned, the survey data that prompted earlier discussion (Trustee Ryan referenced a 32 percent survey result cited during an earlier board conversation), and examples of how trainers and librarians contribute to the district
s instructional goals. The administration said it will present that information at the special meeting next Wednesday.