We’d like to thank Dr. Julie Hackett and the School Committee for their advocacy at recent Select Board meetings. The LEA appreciates their commitment to our schools and hopes we can continue to work together to get the best outcome for our students. Lexington values high quality education, and recognizes exceptional services come from exceptional educators. Unfortunately, the Select Board does not see that the schools are in crisis and has said no to funding them sufficiently. We ask that the Select Board reconsider and fund our students’ success.

The Lexington special education support staff, Unit C, are a group of educators that work extremely hard to meet our students’ needs and support their success. These educators are amongst the lowest paid employees in town, and the newest budget proposal aims to stretch these staff dangerously thin across a demographic of students with increasingly high needs.

When our programs are underfunded, the impact is felt by staff and students. A student that requires a 1:1 staff member might be in a class with three other students, each having an IEP that requires in-class support from an aide. Due to staffing shortages, one staff member could be assigned to all four of those students with the expectation to stay close to the 1:1 student and check-in with the others “as needed.” This is reported that the students are fully covered but, in practice those three students are receiving less support than their IEP calls for. Those three students are not getting the services they need, and without sufficient supervision, behaviors could interrupt the learning of the other students in the room. 

Because our pay is not competitive with jobs outside of education, our programs are rarely fully staffed. Qualified workers are a scarcity, and the town doesn’t pay enough to keep them.

We are committed to our students and love what we do. Many Unit C members do not want to become teachers because they love and value the work they do with “their” kids. However, unless wages are raised to where a Unit C member can live affordably, this is not a sustainable model. We urge the Select Board, and the town at large, to commit to a living wage and provide the full funding our students deserve.

Sincerely, 

Dr. Avon Lewis 

Chair of the Lexington Education Association bargaining team

on behalf of the 30+ members of the LEA Bargaining Team

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