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Vernonia SD 47J board directs superintendent to separate special-education director position and budget
Summary
At a special session, the Vernonia SD 47J board voted to direct Greg Kent to instruct the superintendent to create a separate budget line and search for a special-education director after testimony that the role had been cut and duties combined.
The Vernonia SD 47J board voted at a special session to direct Greg Kent to instruct the superintendent to separate the special-education director role from other duties and to create a distinct budget line for that position.
Parents, a teacher and several board members pressed for the change after participants said the district had combined responsibilities after cutting the SPED director role. A speaker who identified herself as a teacher said she did not know the exact caseload but estimated, “it's probably 15 to 20% of the student population is in SPED services.” The teacher added that placing those duties on a principal or superintendent was unfair and risked missed or overlooked work.
Board member D moved that Greg Kent be authorized to give direction to the superintendent to separate out a budget line for a special-education director and to pursue separate searches; Board member B seconded. The chair called for the vote and announced the motion carries after multiple aye responses were vocalized. The transcript records three affirmative responses; individual voter names are not resolved in the recorded segments.
The chair said the board had previously approved a combined assignment under particular circumstances and credentials, and that the current direction reflects feedback from staff and parents asking the positions be separate. Staff advised that the board can provide direction to Greg Kent during the early stages of budget development so a line item for a SPED director can be included.
No specific salary, timeline for hiring, or effective date for restoring the position was stated in the transcript. The motion's language as recorded authorized Greg Kent to give direction to the superintendent to separate budgeting for a SPED director; the transcript does not record further implementation details or a timeline for a separate search.
Next steps cited by participants: staff will follow up after an upcoming meeting to provide details the board needs to set the full budget agenda, and the board will expect a revised budget proposal that reflects this directive.
