Hamilton County speakers urge board to protect school nurses, counselors and social workers amid proposed cuts

Hamilton County public speakers at the school board work session on April 28 urged the Board of Education to preserve student-facing positions after the district proposed reductions to PRN nurses, school counselors, social workers and student support coaches.

Those who work in school health and student-support roles said the positions under threat are tied directly to student safety and daily attendance and must not be treated as budget line items.

Lindsay Gibson, a Hamilton County school nurse, warned that eliminating PRN nurses would leave schools without medical staff in time-sensitive emergencies. “We can't afford that,” Gibson said. “We're operating at a 70% effective rate, 30% deficit now with the PRN nurses we have.” She told the board the district covered roughly 840 PRN shifts this year and cited county treatment counts: “HCS has had 777 emergency prescribed albuterol and 198 school-issued albuterol treatments.”

School social workers, counselors and student support staff gave accounts of daily interventions they said would be lost if positions were cut. Laura Massey, who identified herself as working at Big Ridge Elementary, said the district’s stated budget goal to “place students at the center” conflicts with a proposal to reduce nine school counselors, nine social workers and three student support coaches. “A reduction of 9 school counselors, 9 social workers, and 3 student support coaches does not indicate continued investment in student well-being,” Massey said.

Heather Beal, a school social worker, described finding a student who had planned mass harm and said persistent school-based follow-up averted further danger. “Because of her persistence, she was able to uncover a serious safety concern to the student and the school community,” Beal said, describing work she said is not interchangeable with other roles.

Haley Shields, who said she is a school counselor at Ooltewah Elementary, summarized districtwide service levels and caseload growth: “All HCS counselors have met with 9,500 students this year, providing 19,000 sessions. This resulted in over 3,000 referrals to outside agencies.” Shields said counselors now manage a rising number of 504 plans and related casework.

Speakers pressed the board to consider the downstream effects of cuts: cancelled field trips, fewer staff to manage chronic absenteeism and lost wraparound services for families experiencing homelessness or food insecurity. Several speakers asked the board to protect positions that operate daily inside school buildings rather than administrative roles outside them.

Board Chair Smith and Superintendent Dr. Robertson were present for the public comment period; speakers repeatedly asked the board to prioritize student-facing roles as the budget process proceeds. The board announced a community listening session on April 29 at 5:30 p.m. at Red Bank Middle School to continue public input.

Ending: Speakers urged the board to weigh the immediate safety and long-term student well-being consequences of staffing cuts as budget deliberations continue; the board scheduled a community meeting to gather additional input before final decisions.