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Teachers tell Siuslaw board cuts to classified staff and teachers will harm early literacy and classroom support
Summary
Two teachers described how reductions in aides and teacher positions will increase class sizes, reduce early literacy supports, and transfer noninstructional duties to teachers; they urged the board to consider classroom impacts as it crafts cuts.
During the public‑comment period at the April 22 budget meeting, two classroom teachers described how proposed reductions could affect students’ learning and daily school operations.
Angela Levarich, a kindergarten teacher at Siuslaw Elementary, explained that instructional aides perform essential work — from behavior and academic interventions to basic health and bathroom support — and said removing those aids would force teachers to choose between assessing students and delivering instruction. “When aids are present, these assessments can occur alongside ongoing instruction. Without that support, I will have to choose between assessing these students or teaching them,” Levarich said.
Chelsea Antilla, a second‑grade teacher, said the proposed plan already contemplates losing one teacher per grade from kindergarten through third grade and that those changes would significantly increase early‑grade class sizes. She added that classified staff are “a lifeline” for recess, lunch, bus duty and data collection and warned that larger class sizes would stretch teachers’ capacity to provide individual attention.
