Table of Contents
The following was submitted by the following eighth-grade students from the McCall Middle School for their civics project: William Thiery, Tristan Kelley, Jovic Stachelski and Marco Winn.
It’s time to change special education in Winchester.
Having quality education is a basic human right, but not everyone has it. All students should have the education they deserve and need to thrive. Families from all over the country move to Winchester for its educational system, yet not every student has the same educational opportunities. That’s where our plan, to have schools with the right resources and programs for students who need them, comes in.
The issue some special education programs face is understaffing, and in some cases, underfunding. There are not enough teachers compared to the number of students, making it hard to meet every student’s needs. Underfunding also affects the training, leaving the staff to deal with students who have more extreme disabilities, with a lot of difficulty.
This makes it really difficult for students with disabilities to get the help they need. Some students are placed in regular classrooms without any extra support, and they get left behind. That’s not fair. Picture trying your best but not having the right tools to succeed, just because there aren't enough teachers or aides to help you. That’s the reality for too many students right now in Winchester.
The town of Winchester spends approximately $21.47 million of its $70.42 million annual budget on special education, which is about 30% of the total budget. Of that, about $16.69 million goes toward staff salaries. An extra $3.8 million is dedicated to Out-of-District tuition to send students outside the district for specialized programs, which constitutes around 18% of the special education budget. To make matters worse, the money is split among 7 different schools, making the amount of money per school even smaller.
Mr. Campbell, the Assistant Director of Special Education in Winchester, highlighted the problems that insufficient funding causes in staffing and resources, “Money is always an issue with the special ed program,” he said. “When the state says they need to add something, but they have to pay for it, that strains the budget even more.”
This budget opening leads to understaffing in important areas, most with Educational Support Personnel (ESPs), leaving students without the attention they need.
We’re just 8th graders, but we care about this issue. We want to live in a town where all students, no matter what problems they face, can learn, grow, and feel like they belong. And it starts with having enough staff, proper training, and fair funding for special education. We believe that Winchester can and will do better. We hope everyone listens, spreads awareness, and tries to make a change.
Let’s work together to guarantee that all students are given the same opportunity for an equal education.
