District 1 vacancies may impact students

Student performance may be affected by vacancies in Yuma Elementary School District 1 staff, according to one board member.

With just one week to go before the opening of a new academic year, Gary Wright, District 1 governing board member, said there are as many as 13 openings for special education positions listed on the district's Web site, as well as 28 vacancies for para-professionals.

"I don't know why all the other Yuma County districts have filled their special education needs," Wright said. "We need to fill these positions with teachers who meet the highly qualified standard and not with long-term substitutes."

At a previous board meeting, Wright said he recommended a special session to deal with vacancies but is still waiting for board action.

But board President Greg Wilkinson disputes Wright's allegations, noting first of all that he never requested a special session to discuss vacancies.

The bottom line is, District 1 has already hired back all those teachers who were initially let go earlier this spring owing to cuts in state aid. But now, all the county districts are trying to fill vacancies in "those hard-to-fill areas such as math, science and special education," Wilkenson said.

Kriss Rico, director of administrative services, said District 1 is looking to fill one position each for an autism class, a pre-school class, an occupational therapist, two speech therapists and 3.5 positions (one 1/2 day) for resource teachers.

The district is also looking for 27 para-professionals including librarians, special education and Title 1 but they must meet the requirements of 60 college credits or an Associates of Arts degree as well as pass a rigorous test approved by the state Department of Education.

The district also needs an eighth-grade math teacher and two second-grade teachers. Interested candidates can get an application at www.yumaed.org and submit it to the district office, 450 W. 6th St.

Terri Rohrer, a former Ron Watson Middle School special education teacher, said she is a highly qualified teacher who has applied for work but has not been invited to interview. She finds it puzzling since there are so many vacancies.

"Lots of times schools hire substitutes who do not have a degree nor are highly qualified. District 1 is saving money on the backs of children and that's not right because they deserve the best. If they're hiring substitutes instead, what's the reason for that when there's highly qualified available?"

Some of the reasons District 1 is unable to attract and retain teachers in all positions are because of salary cuts and the fact they are unable to transfer to another school within the district when they so desire, she added.

"I tried to transfer from Ron Watson, which was making AYP, to a school that was underperforming because there was a greater need for resources and I thought I could make a difference."

Other reasons for teachers leaving District 1 are a lack of supplies and teaching materials and a doubling of the number of special education students per class who have multiple academic and emotional needs, she noted. When all the evidence is added together it is not surprising why teachers leave the district but it is, "baffling why they're not interviewing experienced highly qualified staff," Rohrer said.

Rico said Rohrer had resigned, but declined to comment on a "personnel issue."