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Board approves amended interpreting-services contract after parents and staff press for hiring alternatives
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Summary
Trustees approved an amended agreement with Alpha Interpreting Agency to maintain services for deaf and hard-of-hearing students, while parents and school staff urged the district to develop in-house hiring, CSUN partnerships and competitive pay to reduce agency reliance.
At the April 16 meeting the board approved an amended professional-services agreement with Alpha Interpreting Agency for special education interpreting services, a contract topic that drew sustained public comment from union and classroom stakeholders.
Nicole Gierbecki, BTA vice president and a longtime teacher in the district, cited line-item increases to the interpreting services authorization and asked whether the district could bring those services in-house. She said the contract had grown incrementally "from $700,000" in an earlier amendment to "not to exceed 2,075,000" and asked how the district could attract and retain qualified interpreters rather than continuing to rely on agencies.
District special-education staff and trustees acknowledged the concern and described ongoing recruitment and partnership efforts. A district staff member noted that the deaf-and-hard-of-hearing services community is low incidence and that the district is engaging with local programs (CSUN and others) and county SELPA partners to explore pipelines and training. Board members asked for a comparative study of neighboring districts' pay and retention practices and requested clearer invoicing and SELPA cost-sharing details.
The board voted to approve the amended agreement after discussion; staff emphasized that the amendment addresses immediate service continuity while the district pursues longer-term workforce and retention strategies.
What happens next: district staff said they will compile comparative pay studies, pursue recruitment partnerships with postsecondary programs, and return with options to increase in-house capacity or incentives for retention. The board asked staff to be explicit about the anticipated full-year run rate for agency interpreting so trustees can weigh systemic alternatives against short-term needs.
