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Board hears proposed special education reorganization; trustees request staffing, BCBA, and costs analysis
Summary
Administrators presented a proposed reorganization of special education that creates an assistant director role, reallocates program supervisor duties and adds teacher-on-special-assignment (TOSA) classroom coaches; trustees requested a plan that maintains program supervisors, clarifies BCBA (behavioral) coverage and shows budget comparisons.
District officials described a proposed reorganization of Central Unified’s Special Education and Student Services departments on Jan. 28 that would create an assistant director position, convert two program supervisor roles and expand teacher-on-special-assignment (TOSA) support for classroom-level intervention.
Assistant Superintendent Dr. Lopez and other administrators presented visuals showing the current structure and the proposed model. Under the proposal the district would reduce the number of program supervisors, add an assistant director to handle district-wide programmatic duties (e.g., adult transition programs, non-public school placements and district 504 oversight) and add TOSAs or teachers on special assignment to provide school‑based coaching and intervention supports in classrooms.
Administration said the changes aim to provide more direct classroom coaching and a clearer supervisory chain; administrators told trustees that some current program supervisor workloads include district-level duties beyond site oversight and that an assistant director would centralize those functions.
Trustees raised concerns about reducing program supervisor headcount, the depth of in‑classroom supports relative to program needs and the district’s capacity to cover BCBA (Board Certified Behavior Analyst) expertise. Trustee Kurfand and others urged that the district not “rob Peter to pay Paul” by removing supervisors and instead proposed a plan that would add an assistant director while maintaining or restoring program supervisor positions.
Union representatives and trustees also asked for clearer documentation of the existing psychologist/BCBA capacity, whether a lead psychologist with BCBA credentialing exists and where that role would sit in the new org chart. Administration said a district psychologist position is filled but that a separate “lead BCBA” job description had not been created in this packet; administrators agreed to include the psychologist/BCBA roles in the next presentation and to provide a staffing and budget comparison showing alternatives that preserve site supervision and increase in‑classroom supports.
Trustees also asked for clarity on experience requirements in the director and assistant director job descriptions and recommended including explicit expectations about experience serving multilingual and historically marginalized student populations. Administration agreed to return with the requested analysis and a draft recruiting timetable; trustees asked that the district recruit with broad stakeholder input and to engage Leadership Associates (a recruitment firm) for senior administrator searches.
