Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Special Education Staffing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Parents urge board to address paraprofessional vacancies, program cuts and class sizes
Summary
Multiple speakers told the Hazlet Township Public School District board that removed online resources, restructured paraprofessional roles, and concentrated behavioral students are harming instruction; parents cited 16 paraprofessional resignations and asked for clearer discipline, staffing and transparency.
Several parents and community members used the public‑comment period to press the Hazlet Township Public School District for clearer staffing plans, program continuity and classroom safety.
Vanessa (SEG 333) said district resources such as Reading Eggs, Raz‑Plus and BrainPOP Jr. were removed and argued those tools help at‑home learning. She said specialty teachers are covering general‑education classes, that behavioral students are concentrated in particular schools, and that inconsistent discipline and shifting coverage are harming both students and teachers. "Do better for our teachers and do better for our kids," she told the board.
Marie Joseph (SEG 423) described a paraprofessional staffing crisis: she said 16 paraprofessionals resigned since May, asserted that job descriptions were changed to add responsibilities and data tasks, and questioned why the district had no public job postings for replacements. Joseph suggested the district may be moving toward outsourced paraprofessional providers and asked how the district plans to staff classrooms while vacancies remain.
Other speakers voiced related concerns: one parent said third‑grade classes felt overcrowded after new desks were added and asked whether the fire marshal had verified maximum capacity; another said special‑education inclusion in electives has declined at some schools and asked for more sensory‑friendly accommodations and timely speech/OT services. Several callers tied classroom size and paraprofessional staffing to instructional quality and student safety.
District representatives acknowledged the concerns and indicated administrators (including Dr. Ridley) would respond to questions raised during public comment; the transcript records an offer that Dr. Ridley would reply to commenters during the week following the meeting.
The comments raise several actionable questions for the board: the district’s plan to replace paraprofessionals, whether job‑description changes created recruitment or retention problems, the status of outsourced service contracts (the 'Bigger Picture Learning Academy' was mentioned by a commenter), and whether advertised courses (including career‑academy offerings) were still being delivered as promised.
