Teachers, parents press board on Title I resourcing and special‑education caseloads at Title I hub schools

Public commenters and teachers used the district’s April 15 board meeting to raise staffing, class‑size and planning‑time concerns at Title I schools and at two elementary schools that host district full‑day special‑education hubs.

Emma Russell, a teacher at Bachman Elementary and a Title I school, told trustees she supports revisiting the district’s hub model for full‑day behavior and academic support units and asked the board to prioritize Title I resources for two hub schools, Bachman and Franklin. "We're placing students who have not had their needs met in a traditional special‑education model into classrooms that already have the highest needs without providing the additional resources right now to ensure success," Russell said.

Russell described a primary‑grade classroom where 21 of 55 students in a grade level have individualized education programs (IEPs), and she cited nationally recognized guidance that collaborative classrooms should not exceed about 30% of students with IEPs. She said co‑teaching and additional paraprofessional support or smaller class sizes are needed to deliver legally required services and strong tiered instruction for multilingual learners and students with disabilities.

A parent from Bonneville Elementary, Neli Levitt, and teacher Courtney Lee raised concerns about a proposed change to Friday early‑release times that would reduce guaranteed elementary planning time. Levitt said changing the early‑release hour would disrupt family schedules and local routines; Lee told the board kindergarten teachers rely on Friday planning time for preparation and meetings.

District staff presented a Title I survey and a family‑school collaboration overview. Dr. Lisa Taylor said the survey collected more than 400 responses from elementary Title I teachers and more than 100 from middle‑school teachers; administrators also responded. Staff said the top teacher requests were more planning time, access to high‑quality curriculum materials and co‑teaching or push‑in support; administrators prioritized academic coaching and centralized professional development.

Staff and community members also discussed family‑school collaboration resources: food pantries, vision and dental referrals, teen centers, bus passes and a Salt Lake Education Foundation app for families. Board members urged staff to increase districtwide outreach about those services and to consider the 2024 passage of SB 164 (Family Outreach Amendments), which allows schools to form local family outreach programs with board oversight.

Board members asked staff to model costs for potential baseline staffing changes (for example, paraprofessionals, school counselors and behavioral specialists) and to pursue a study‑session that would compare scenarios and funding options.

Trustees acknowledged the survey as an initial step and asked staff to bring more detail to budget and allocation planning ahead of the June budget decisions.