Weston officials defend Pathways program, say in-district mental-health staffing prevents costly outplacements

The Weston Board of Education heard a detailed overview Jan. 27 of how mental-health staff are deployed across the district and why administrators say the Pathways program is necessary to keep students in-district.

Administrators said the district has seen rising demand for special-education and accommodation services even as total enrollment declined, and that mental-health staffing has not increased to match need. “Our staffing in the area of mental health support has actually remained flat,” said Dr. Tracy Edwards, who led the presentation on staffing and services.

School leaders told the board this matters because students in the Pathways program — a “school within a school” at Weston High School for students with complex internalizing social-emotional challenges — can remain in Weston instead of being placed out of district in therapeutic day programs or residential placements that administrators said typically cost more than $100,000 a year. “If you take one of those students out … that probably will be at least $150,000 to $200,000,” said Superintendent Lisa Seketa, describing the district’s comparison of in‑district versus outplacement costs.

Edwards described how each building is staffed: Hurlbut and Weston Intermediate each have a school psychologist and a school social worker; the middle and high schools each have a social worker and a school psychologist, and the high school has five school counselors (one of whom serves as director of guidance with a reduced caseload). Edwards emphasized that mental‑health providers work with the whole student population, not only students with IEPs, and that school psychologists also conduct psychoeducational evaluations for initial and triennial special-education reviews.

Board members pressed for caseload numbers and efficiency options. One member noted a district count that appeared to show nine counselors and five social workers; board members and administrators debated whether caseloads should be compared to the National Association for School Counselors’ 250-to-1 guideline. “That number is extremely misleading,” Edwards said, adding that Weston counselors provide a higher level of individualized support than is common in many districts and that crisis interventions can occupy a provider’s full day.

Administrators said Pathways is funded at about 1.6 FTE and that current enrollment in the program is about 12 students. “We believe that it’s money quite frankly well spent,” Seketa said, adding that the district’s program replaces a costlier, contracted service and keeps students in the Weston community.

The presentation tied the mental‑health staffing discussion to budget choices: administrators said the proposed budget maintains current staffing levels for these positions, and warned that reducing staff could increase out‑of‑district placements and transportation costs.

Board members asked for further detail on caseloads and on how the district coordinates across buildings during crises. Administrators said staff do cross-cover when needed but that such moves have costs in terms of schedule disruption and lost counseling time.

Administrators concluded that the district’s current mix of counselors, social workers and psychologists is central to students’ ability to access instruction and to operate safely in crisis situations. They told the board the budget proposal preserves those staffing levels.

The board scheduled further budget discussion at a meeting the next day.