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Teachers and specialists warn reduced para support in elementary autism classrooms is creating safety and instructional gaps
Summary
Two elementary autism teachers and a district behavior specialist told the board that classrooms that had three paraeducators last year now have only two, causing supervision gaps, increased requests for 1:1 para assessments and disruptions to instruction. They urged the district to restore the third para to improve safety and learning.
JL Gomez, an elementary teacher who oversees a transitional‑kindergarten through second‑grade autism classroom, told the Coachella Valley Unified School District board on Oct. 23 that reduced paraeducator staffing has created daily safety and instructional problems.
Gomez said the classroom currently has 10 students — including four who are attending school for the first time — but lacks the third paraeducator that was in place last year. “When two parents must accompany a student to the restroom, the remaining students are left without adequate supervision,” she said, describing recurrent restroom‑coverage gaps and frequent interruptions to instruction caused by staff shortages.
Ashley Sankoski, a district behavior specialist who helps coordinate autism programs, corroborated Gomez’s account. Sankoski said elementary autism classrooms were relocated this year and experienced a reduction from three paras per classroom to two; she said the district has already seen an increase in requests for one‑to‑one paraeducator assessments (RESI assessments). “Removing the third para did not save money,” she said; instead, parents and teachers are pursuing individual IEP‑level solutions that can restore staffing on a case‑by‑case basis.
Why it matters: Reduced paraeducator coverage can increase safety risks (elopement, toileting supervision, accidents) and interrupt instruction for students with intensive needs. Teachers and specialists said the changes have led to more emergency requests for assessments and added workload for behavior staff.
What the board heard: Gomez invited trustees to visit the classroom to see coverage gaps and asked the district to reconsider staffing allocations for primary‑grade autism classrooms. Sankoski said she has already received at least as many RESI requests in the first half of October as in all of last year and expects further increases.
What the board did: Trustees requested follow‑up information from staff and signaled support for reviewing staffing allocations; no formal staffing decision was made at the meeting.
Attribution: Direct quotations and the claims about increased RESI requests and the current 2‑para staffing model come from JL Gomez and Ashley Sankoski during public comment at the Oct. 23 board meeting.
