Kendra Frank, a concerned parent, decided to move her family out of Fort Worth ISD after the district cut speech-language services that helped her son learn to speak. The district eliminated 32 categories of positions, including part-time speech therapists and speech therapy assistants, but only 13 of those categories resulted in actual job losses.

Impact on Students

More than 6,200 FWISD students receive speech-language therapy, and the cuts have left many parents worried about the impact on their children’s education. Frank’s son, Elliott, was once non-verbal but made significant progress with the help of speech-language therapy. However, with the cuts, Frank fears that her son will not receive the same level of support and may stagnate in his development.

Other parents have also expressed concerns about the cuts, citing the importance of speech-language services in supporting student outcomes and improving literacy. Jessica Gutwein, a part-time speech pathologist, noted that speech services play a key role in student learning and should not be separate from academic support.

District Response

The district plans to lean on three third-party firms for contracted student services, including speech-language pathologists. Deputy Superintendent Daniel Soliz described the changes as part of a broader effort to streamline school services. However, some parents and educators have raised concerns about the potential lack of consistency and continuity in speech-language services.

The district has not clearly explained how affected services will be provided, leaving many parents uncertain about the future of their children’s education. As one parent, Monica Bharadwaj, said, ‘Take a second look at this list and consider and understand the student outcomes. The impact is not minor and is not on an insignificant number of kids.’

Original reporting: Fort Worth Report — read the source article.