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Hutto ISD examines SPED staffing, proposes stipend increases to reduce reliance on expensive contractors
Summary
Administrators told trustees the district is spending significantly on contracted special-education specialists and proposed raising in-house stipends (for SLPs, PT/OT, diagnosticians and department chairs) to recruit staff and lower long-term contracting costs.
Administrators highlighted staffing shortages in specialized special-education roles and presented options to increase stipends to recruit in-house staff rather than relying on contract providers. The presenter explained that contracting for specialized roles can cost the district significantly more than direct hires, saying contract arrangements for some specialists can run the district roughly $125,000 to as much as $150,000 per contracted person annually.
District staff suggested meeting in the middle on pay to recruit in-house specialists (for example, increasing offers closer to contracted rates) and also discussed hiring assistants where appropriate (e.g., SLPAs under a supervising SLP) as part of a strategy to lower costs over time. The administration said it would return with more specifics and budget options to evaluate trade-offs, and trustees asked for the exact counts of vacancies and stipend recipients for the board's planning.
