Special-education staff tell board understaffing, paperwork and training gaps are harming students

Katie Merza, co-chair of the Howard County Education Association’s Special Education Committee, and several special-education teachers and related-service providers described a multi-part staffing and resourcing crisis at the Dec. 16 board meeting.

Merza and colleagues organized testimony into themes—training and preparation, instructional materials shortages, staffing shortages and safety, programming gaps, increasing student needs, planning and paperwork burdens, impacts on instruction and a human-cost sustainability issue—and urged the board to act. A special educator said, "I have 22 students on my caseload. How am I supposed to successfully meet my students' needs and follow FAPE for each of these students?" Another presenter said injuries on the job have become routine due to understaffing.

Speakers said substitute teachers rarely accept special-education assignments, paraprofessional coverage is inconsistent, and special educators are frequently required to write IEPs, conduct assessments and chair meetings for students they do not teach because of absences—practices staff said undermine compliance and safety. The testimony included an appeal to the board to "come spend a day in a regional special education room" to better understand classroom realities.

District staff acknowledged the challenges and described targeted implementation strategies. Administration representatives said Comprehensive Coordinated Early Intervening Services (CCEIS) teams have embedded staff in four focus schools to provide in-school interventions and onsite coaching; the district is using MSDE/IDEA-required CCEIS reserves to fund some of that work. The superintendent committed to follow-up memos and an update on the special-education strategic plan in February.

Why this matters: Testimony details operational impacts (missed services, caseload sizes, injuries and paperwork burdens) that have legal and programmatic relevance under IDEA and the district’s obligations to provide a free, appropriate public education. The claims put pressure on budget choices, staffing allocations and compliance oversight.

Board Q&A focused on possible immediate steps (coaching, reallocating staff, peer accountability and targeted professional development for teachers who regularly refer students) and longer-term options (programmatic realignment, advocacy for more funding). District leaders said some professional learning and anti-bias work have been rolled out but acknowledged time and staffing constraints limit implementation.

Ending: The board asked staff for more specifics and noted the subject will be central in the upcoming budget dialogue; no immediate new hires or program changes were adopted during the meeting.