WPUSD approves job descriptions and salaries for new district jobs

Job descriptions for three new district positions were reviewed but only two were approved by the Western Placer Unified School District trustees at Tuesday's board meeting. The positions are for a transition services coordinator, an educational services specialist and an English learner educational services specialist. According to a report from district Assistant Superintendent Cliff DeGraw, the positions were developed as a result of the "ongoing review of staffing needs by the district." DeGraw was absent during Tuesday's meeting, so Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services Scott Pickett introduced the positions, described the duties and gave the board an idea of each position's salary. The first position discussed was the transition services coordinator. "Currently, our workability grant coordinator and transition specialist position is filled by one person and is funded on a scale that is not in line with competitive and surrounding districts," DeGraw wrote in his report. "In order to align the job description and work duties more accurately, we propose creating a potion that combines the two grants related to this work into one position, the transition services coordinator." The transition services coordinator's salary will align with the salary of an after-school coordinator, starting at $44,516, including health benefits. The transition services coordinator's job description states: "The Transition Services Coordinator will provide designated instruction, counseling, and support, as it relates to post-secondary transition, to students with Individual Education Plans (IEP). The Transition Services Coordinator presents case managers, students, and families with information on training and employment opportunities, as well as linkages to post-secondary agencies and support services." Both the educational services specialist and English learner educational services specialist will replace the district's current Teacher on Special Assignment (TOSA) position, according to Pickett. "We currently have three teachers on special assignment and they do a fantastic job," Pickett said. "They are there through the teachers' union and teacher's salary. We wanted to provide a little more flexibility with their position." "One of the challenges with having teachers on special assignment is you have to employ temporary teachers," Pickett said. "Which means you have to maintain these temporary teachers and they're let go at the end of the year, only for them to have to reapply." Both positions are expected to receive a starting salary of $90,819, which is equivalent to the pay an elementary school assistant principal receives, based on the current salary schedule of the Western Placer Unified School District. DeGraw summarized that both specialists "will develop and evaluate district curriculum, assessments, interventions and grading practices to increase student achievement. They (the educational services specialist and English learner educational services specialist) will provide professional development and instructional coaching to support teachers, administrators and classified instructional staff in maximizing student learning." A key difference between the two specialists is that the English learner educational services specialist will specifically focus on helping the district aid students whose first language is not English. On the other hand, the educational services specialist's duties consist of aiding administrators and teachers in improving teaching and instructional tactics, lesson designs, student engagement and also serving on numerous committees related to the district's educational services. Board members decided Tuesday that the salary of the English learner educational services specialist will be revisited at a later meeting. Superintendent Kerry Callahan said the document did not include a salary schedule specified for the English learner educational services specialist. The board agreed that the need for an English learner specialist is still present and the original plan is to have a targeted recruitment for this position, according to Callahan. "By creating more general positions that would allow for us to assign based on need, the goal is to hire higher positions, where people have specialized skills and would be assigned to certain things," Callahan said. "So an educational services specialist would be in charge of ensuring that our English learners' progress continues to move in the right direction. In lieu of having a specified position, English learner services only, then it allows us to be able to assign projects based on what the needs and the direction of the district." The board voted unanimously on the descriptions and salary schedules of the transition services coordinator and educational services specialist. The board agreed to approve the job description of the English learner educational services specialist but will review the position's salary schedule at a later date. It is expected that two approved positions will be filled for the upcoming 2022-2023 school year, according to Western Placer Unified School District's marketing and communications coordinator Emma Oehler.