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Board approves full‑time school psychologist position using $40,000 student‑support aid and in‑house savings
Summary
The board approved adding a 1.0 FTE school psychologist to replace half‑time outsourced services, citing a $40,000 state aid stream that requires a new position to access and anticipated budget neutrality by shifting expenses from contracted services in‑house.
Cook County Public Schools trustees approved the addition of a full‑time (1.0 FTE) school psychologist to provide on‑site assessment and intervention services, replacing part of the district’s current contracted services.
A district staff member explained the hire responds to a proactive candidate outreach and an administrative review of revenue streams: the state’s 'student support personnel' aid provides about $40,000 annually for a new qualifying position (licensed nurse, counselor, therapist, or school psychologist). Because an existing nurse recently resigned, that $40,000 is now available to fund a new qualifying licensed position.
The staff member said hiring an in‑house psychologist would eliminate payments for a district 0.5 FTE currently purchased from Northland Learning Center (NLC), bringing the change close to budget‑neutral when combined with the $40,000 aid. The new position would be posted publicly and include the required clinical supervision from NLC during the candidate’s practicum/clinical year.
Board members supported the request, noting benefits such as more timely assessments, on‑site functional behavioral assessments, and improved coordination of special‑education services; the board voted to approve the position. The staff member said the hiring process will take several weeks and the position could later be partially contracted to charter schools in the county if appropriate.
Quote: “This money could be used for this because this would be a new position that qualifies,” the staff member said, explaining how the funding streams align.
