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Apart from shortage of school psychologists, there’s also a  lack of classroom assistants . In case you   don’t know who they are: Special Education Classroom Assistants are trained professionals who provide additional support to students with disabilities in Chicago Public Schools.

Role of SECA (Special Education Classroom Assistants )

They play a crucial role in the education system as they help bridge the gap between students and teachers, providing necessary assistance in classrooms. In some cases, they assist in personal care needs for Sped children, for example, feeding or helping them use the bathroom. As you can see, their roles are diverse and quite essential in special education.

One parent who is also a former Chicago Board of Education member, Mary Fahey Hughes, gives a personal testimony of how SECA’s (Special Education Classroom Assistants) have been instrumental in her son Aidan’s development as a student with autism in CPS. These professionals helped Aidan navigate his education journey and provided him with the necessary support and guidance to achieve academic success.

Decline in services and care for children

Due to budget issues and ongoing labor disputes, the essential role and ranks of SECA’s are currently under scrutiny. This has caused concern amongst advocates who fear that this may result in a decline in services and care for children with special needs, ultimately affecting their academic progress of these students.

It’s a dispute between the Chicago Teachers Union  CTU versus Service Employees International Union SIEU. While both are normally close allies, the current disagreement stems from a proposal by CTU that would allow teacher assistants also to provide support for special needs students. SEIU members have traditionally carried out this role, and they are now fighting to protect their representation in this area as the demand for Special Education Classroom Assistants (SECAs) has drastically increased in the past five years. In contrast, the number of teacher assistants (TAs) represented by CTU has steadily declined over the last decade.

Following the rejection of CTU’s proposal, SEIU has expressed its intention to take legal action against the district, further complicating the already tense situation. SEIU’s parent union has also passed a resolution in support of defending its role and importance within the education system, stating that it is “under attack” by CTU.

CTU, on the other hand, maintains that its grievance is not an attack on SEIU but rather a call for the district to honor teacher assistance jobs and that SECA jobs are mostly supposed to be reserved for teacher assistants. They also maintain that SECA jobs should be limited to students who require diapering and toileting assistance rather than being used as a blanket replacement for teacher assistant jobs.

Importance of SECAs

On these grounds, SEIU sees the grievance as a move by CTU to gain more control and diminish the importance of SECAs within the school system. They also view it as an offensive implication that SECAs are only capable of performing basic tasks like bathroom and feeding responsibilities rather than recognizing their valuable contributions to students’ education. However, Chicago Public Schools has chosen not to comment on the issue at this time.

All in all, as most school principals have commented,  the most crucial factor in deciding who should be assigned to support a child is ensuring that they have proper training and qualifications for the job.

This is essential for providing quality education and support to students, regardless of whether the person has a TA or SECA job code. At Illinois Autism, we recognize the importance of having well-trained and qualified staff to support children with special needs, and we strongly advocate for proper training and qualifications for all individuals assigned to work in this field.

By investing in the special needs training and development of our teachers and support staff, we can meet the diverse needs of students better and provide them with the necessary resources to succeed. With that said,  we encourage all parents who suspect a loved one’s Autism to get them evaluated as soon as possible.

Early intervention is key in helping children with Autism reach their full potential and improve their quality of life. Don’t hesitate to reach out to us.