Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Comment topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Teachers and parents urge district to prioritize staffing and special‑education continuity during budget discussions
Summary
Public commenters at the June 18 Thompson School District board meeting urged the board to prioritize classroom staffing and continuity for special‑education students as the board considered budget and spending items. Commenters also raised calendar timing concerns and praised district staff.
Several public commenters at the Thompson School District board meeting on June 18 urged the board to prioritize frontline staff and continuity of services for special‑education students while the board considered budget and capital spending.
Jordan Kreger, who identified themself as a district teacher and former district student, told the board an increase in special‑education caseloads (he said his school had seen “an almost 18% increase” for the coming year) was being paired with reductions in full‑time equivalents in support staff. Kreger objected to the district’s stated hiring range for the superintendent, calling the proposed senior leader package “equivalent to a little over four first‑year teachers” and saying classroom staff do ‘‘the day‑to‑day work that gets students to graduation.” Kreger closed by saying, “I love my job. I absolutely love my students,” and urged the board to keep classroom and certified staff needs front‑of‑mind when setting budgets.
Parent Anja Wells (they/them pronouns) told the board they were specifically concerned about turnover among paraprofessionals and other specialists who support students in the district’s ILC classroom at Lucille Irwin. Wells said a changing roster of paraprofessionals makes it harder for a nonverbal child to make academic progress and asked the district to investigate turnover causes and plan to ensure consistent supports.
Other callers and written commenters offered mixed perspectives: some praised the board’s transparency on budget items and commended the district for securing funding without raising taxes; others urged civility and criticized a board member’s social‑media posts. A caller suggested shifting the academic calendar to start earlier in June (to reduce heat costs and avoid a city event in early August); staff said calendar changes involve negotiations and policy parameters and noted the board adopted a small calendar amendment for a January plan‑time day during the meeting.
Board members acknowledged the public comments and said staff and trustees would continue to discuss staffing and budget questions; CFO and operations staff told the board they would post additional budget detail and follow up on questions about supply allowances and project scopes.
