Dametria Codrington noticed pretty quickly last school year that her son Stephen was just sitting in front of a blank computer screen for a large chunk of his day.
鈥淗e would always say, 鈥業鈥檓 not in class.鈥� I鈥檓 like, 鈥榃hy are you just sitting there? Why I don鈥檛 hear nobody?鈥� It was always the teacher for his special service class wasn鈥檛 in.鈥�
This went on for almost a year -- despite her begging the Bridgeport school district to find a special education teacher for her then-eighth grader, who has ADHD and a learning disability.
鈥滻f I didn鈥檛 see what was going on while he was learning remote, I would have probably never known, never seen any of it,鈥� she said.
When his school reopened, 鈥淭hey just put him in the back of the class while this other class was doing their work with their teachers,鈥� Codrington said. 鈥滺e wasn鈥檛 on those kids鈥� math levels. ... He probably don鈥檛 want to make it seem like, 鈥業鈥檓 dumb.鈥� So it bothers me that he had to feel that way. He鈥檚 in high school learning multiplication.鈥�
While remote learning opened Codrington鈥檚 eyes to what was going on with her 14-year-old son鈥檚 education, staff shortages have perplexed high-poverty districts throughout 黑料吃瓜网 for years. That鈥檚 because districts like Bridgeport struggle to keep their teachers from leaving for suburban districts, where the pay is often higher and class sizes smaller.
鈥漌e鈥檙e in a critical time here in 黑料吃瓜网,鈥� said Bridgeport Superintendent Michael Testani. 鈥淭eacher shortages and being able to fill teacher vacancies are becoming in a crisis mode. We make every effort, but we are unable to compete financially with other districts.鈥�
Almost a month into this school year, Bridgeport still has 16 special education teaching positions it needs to fill. Statewide, between 95 and 250 teaching positions go unfilled each year. are in high-poverty districts.
An of state data by 黑料吃瓜网 shows that while the number of children with disabilities has increased significantly over the last 10 school years, staffing in high-poverty districts has not kept pace.
鈥淚f we don鈥檛 enact some sort of legislation specifically to pay teachers, this is going to be detrimental,鈥� said Testani. 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to find that we鈥檙e not going to be able to fill positions more and more as the years go on. And kids are going to have a revolving door of substitute teachers, which to me is criminal.鈥�
The state is well aware of the problem.
The impact this shortage is having on students in one of those high-poverty districts is outlined in the state Department of Education鈥檚 recent into Bridgeport that found shortfalls in special education staffing in more than half the schools. The department鈥檚 investigation was brought on by a group of parents who filed a complaint against the district.
Kathryn Meyer, an attorney with the Center for Children鈥檚 Advocacy who filed the systemic with 黑料吃瓜网 Legal Services, said that even for children who do have a teacher the caseloads are not manageable.
鈥淭o say that person is covering is just, it鈥檚 just false. There鈥檚 just no way,鈥� Meyer said. 鈥淎nd they鈥檒l tell you that. They鈥檙e like, 鈥業 can鈥檛 even keep up with my own caseload.鈥欌��
In the wake of the state鈥檚 investigation, Bridgeport has been ordered to meet with every parent whose child didn鈥檛 have a special education teacher last school year to determine if that student needs a tutor, after-school programs or other supports to make up for the lost instruction.
The issue has been going on for years. A commissioned by the education department in 2019 titled 鈥淭he State of the 黑料吃瓜网 Teacher Workforce鈥� outlined how wealthier towns hired much more special education staff as the number of students with disabilities increased. For example, wealthy districts hired a new special education teacher for every 14 additional special education students enrolled, compared to a new teacher for 49 students in poor districts.
This is the that the state has found systemic problems standing in the way of special-need students in Bridgeport getting what they require for them to make progress in school.
Codrington鈥檚 son is proud of his mom for speaking up.
鈥滺e thinks it鈥檚 cool what we have done, and he loves his math tutor. I wish we could have Randy forever,鈥� she said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 so excited to show me the work that he鈥檚 completed. I look at it, I鈥檓 like, 鈥榊ou didn鈥檛 do this.鈥� You know, I鈥檓 messing with him. He鈥檚 like, 鈥榶es.鈥� I tell him, 鈥榊ou go, boy,鈥� and we fist-bump. And he鈥檚 just so excited to show me things he learned.鈥�
Stephen now has a special education teacher, too. His mom hopes that doesn鈥檛 change.
The state Department of Education was not available this week to be interviewed or respond to questions about staffing challenges in high-poverty districts or its investigation into Bridgeport.
