Dallas Center-Grimes board hears mounting concern over counselor cuts amid enrollment decline

The Dallas Center-Grimes Community School District held public comments and a lengthy superintendent report March 31 as residents and staff urged the board to preserve a full-time counselor at Dallas Center Elementary (DCE).

At a public hearing on the proposed fiscal 2026 property tax levy, parent Kate Benasiak told the board the district had added roughly “three administrative positions totaling roughly $400,000” and spent more than $30,000 on an audit and growth report, while schools were now losing classroom and counselor capacity. “Without a new operational plan,” she said, “I urge you … to start voting now for approving any other budgets until there's both an interim and a long term strategic plan in place that's designed to directly serve the students in the buildings.”

Why it matters: Board and community speakers said the proposed staffing changes would create unequal access to counselors and principals across elementary schools and could reduce supports for students with mental-health or behavioral needs. Superintendent Dr. Bloom responded with enrollment figures, staffing proposals and financial context that the board said will guide further work.

Parents and staff described the immediate impact. Jonathan Fransen, a West Des Moines resident who attended a February parent forum, said the district’s stated commitment to “equity and access” was undermined by a plan to split DCE’s counselor between Heritage and DCE. Fransen told the board that, based on the February presentation, “moving DCE down to a half time counselor and Heritage up to 1.5 counselors will not add an additional counselor for support within the district. It will only shift that need.”

Brooke Falsgraf, a special-education teacher at DCE, told the board a part-time counselor would reduce the school’s ability to deliver Tier 1 MTSS social-emotional learning lessons and early interventions. “A part time counselor simply isn't enough to meet the needs of all students and provide the level of consistency required for effective MTSS support,” she said.

Amy Strutt, a Dallas Center council member and parent, provided district-by-district ratios derived from 2025 projected enrollments to illustrate the disparity if DCE lost counselor time. Using the district figures, she said DCE would have about 308 students per counselor under the proposed split—higher than other elementary buildings—while Heritage would have roughly 219 students per counselor.

Superintendent's explanation and next steps

Superintendent Dr. Bloom told the board the district faces declining elementary enrollment and constrained funding. He said DCE’s enrollment has fallen from 217 students in 2022 to 169 this school year and to a projected 151 for next year; those counts include open-enrollment movements the administration is tracking. The superintendent said that, as a result of the district’s projected state aid changes, DCG expects roughly $230,000 in additional state revenue but that moving existing teacher salaries one step down the schedule would cost about $330,000—exceeding the new funds.

To address competing needs across buildings, Dr. Bloom said district leaders proposed a shared counseling arrangement as one possible solution while staff experts and building leaders flesh out schedules. “I have never said to any person at DCE that Mallory is fiftyfifty,” he told the board. “No one has said half of your day is here and half of your day is here.” He described one feasible scenario in which the counselor would provide 1–2 hours per day of guidance instruction at Heritage and remain primarily at DCE the rest of the time, and said building principals and counselors would “get in the room” to develop workable schedules.

Dr. Bloom also said the district plans to add one kindergarten or first-grade section at DCE next year and to fund a high-school Spanish teacher and a TLC (career & technical education facilitator) position from non-general-fund sources (teacher quality/TQ funds). He emphasized there are tradeoffs and asked the board for ideas and clarity about priorities.

Clarifying details and context

- Enrollment counts cited to the board: DCE 2022 = 217; DCE current year = 169; DCE projected = 151 (includes 3 open-enrollment incoming students). (Source: Superintendent remarks.) - Heritage projected enrollment cited ≈ 324–329 students. (Source: Superintendent comments and public speakers.) - Counselor staffing comparisons: Superintendent cited American School Counselors Association recommendation of 1 counselor per 250 students and said the national average is closer to 1 per 385. The district’s current counselor-to-student breakdown presented by administration: DCE ~169:1, Oakview ~276:1, Northridge ~280:1, South Prairie ~292:1, Heritage ~332:1, high school ~358:1. (Source: Superintendent remarks.) - Budget sensitivity: Superintendent said ~ $230,000 in “new money” under budget guarantee scenario compared with an estimated $330,000 cost to move teacher salaries one step on the pay schedule. (Source: Superintendent remarks.)

What the board did and what remains

Board members asked for details and time to study options; the superintendent said staffing decisions were not finalized and invited principals and counselors to craft schedules and proposals. The board approved routine agenda and consent items during the meeting, but did not take a final vote at the March 31 session to reassign or reclassify counselor positions. The superintendent said a program review of counseling support is planned next school year to create more objective staffing criteria.

Ending

Speakers at the meeting urged the board to prioritize student-facing supports and to weigh short-term scheduling fixes against a broader strategic plan tying staffing to measurable outcomes. The board directed administration to continue meetings with building leaders and counselors and to bring back options; final staffing assignments for 2025–26 were not adopted at the March 31 meeting.