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Parents and teachers urge board to guarantee at least two teachers per grade at Granite Elementary
Summary
Several parents and teachers from Granite Elementary addressed the board on Feb. 18, urging the district to ensure a minimum of two classroom teachers per grade and to avoid letting full‑time equivalents (FTEs) fall below 12 at the school. Commenters said recent staff losses have produced large class sizes to the point that some grades now
Parents and teachers from Granite Elementary pressed the Canyons Board of Education on Feb. 18 to protect staffing levels at the school, saying proposed reductions in full‑time equivalent (FTE) positions threaten class sizes and the school's culture.
Speakers asked the board to guarantee at least two classroom teachers per grade and to ensure Granite does not fall below 12 FTEs overall. Several said current class sizes have reached 28 students in some classrooms and warned that allowing the school to drop to 11 or fewer FTEs would leave some grades with a single teacher and would be unsustainable.
Brooke Easton, a Sandy resident and parent of three young children, said her family chose Granite in part because of its small classes and community, and said recent staffing losses have left grades functioning on a "skeleton crew." She urged the board to require at least two teachers per grade or to move more quickly toward community consolidations if staffing cannot be sustained.
Tiffany Smith, speaking on behalf of a group of Granite teachers, said the school is currently at 12 FTE and that dropping below that level would make teams of teachers impossible. Smith said teacher morale is low, that educators are "overwhelmed and under supported," and that the human cost of continuing to staff schools at minimal levels is high. She asked the board to treat a staffing floor as the minimum acceptable standard for elementary schools.
Other parents and community members described how principals and staff are attempting to manage with reconfigured grades, temporary aides, and other stopgap measures. Speakers asked for earlier notices and proactive hiring policies that would add staff as class sizes approach thresholds such as 30 students.
District staff said the board's long‑range planning group is examining consolidation and staffing options and that board communication will increase as the district develops final recommendations. Several board members asked staff to provide clearer household‑level cost comparisons in other agenda items and to keep community members involved as facilities and staffing discussions continue.
Next steps: district staff will continue long‑range planning and asked community members to submit specific examples to principals so staff can investigate. The board said it will seek to increase transparency about where the district is in the consolidation/long‑range planning process and to report back to patrons.
