Granite School District is once again facing a crisis of parent trust — this time sparked by proposed special education cuts in elementary schools.

Morningside Elementary, my neighborhood school, will likely be impacted.

Families are outraged because this decision directly conflicts with Utah’s urgent, statewide commitment to improving early literacy. As a dyslexia reading practitioner, occupational therapist and a parent of children with dyslexia, I’ve seen firsthand how vital special education services are in helping struggling readers thrive, which drives my commitment to protecting and expanding access for every child who needs them.

I have always believed that Granite shares my fundamental goal of ensuring every child has the opportunity to succeed. But these proposed cuts are not a routine staffing shift — they could jeopardize the progress of children who rely on specialized instruction, strip teachers of critical support and place an already overextended school community in an untenable position as academic expectations continue to rise.

Reducing special education staffing — especially now, during Utah’s most significant literacy reform in decades — is the wrong decision. SB241, Utah’s new early literacy law, requires intensive, evidence‑based interventions for students to read proficiently by the end of third grade. Gov. Spencer Cox has been unequivocal: The goal is not to retain students, but to ensure they never fall so far behind in the first place. At the Utah State Board of Education Literacy Symposium, Cox underscored the state’s intent: “It’s not that we want to hold kids back, it’s that we want them reading at a third‑grade level so we don’t have to hold them back.”

Morningside’s needs are not decreasing, they are growing. Based on ongoing referrals and academic data, the number of students receiving special education services will likely rise this year, and again next fall.

According to the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute’s 2026 early‑literacy report, nearly half of Utah’s K-3 students are reading below grade level, with significant gaps for students with disabilities. Under SB241, third graders who do not reach proficiency face mandatory retention, unless they qualify for an exemption. Families will now feel compelled to seek special education services to ensure their children receive the support needed to avoid retention.

Reducing our special education allocation at this moment is directly at odds with the intent of SB241. The law increases the urgency of early identification and intervention; it does not reduce it.

A special education teacher does far more than teach. They play a central role in student support meetings, behavior intervention planning, safety, teacher consultation, data review, progress monitoring and preventative support for struggling students. The district should account for the substantial time required for these additional responsibilities through a workload‑analysis model, instead of relying solely on caseload totals.

With an already large caseload and predictable increases in evaluations due to SB241, proposed cuts at Morningside Elementary are unworkable. It places the school at risk of missing Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) timelines, failing to provide Individualized Education Programs (IEP) services, and falling short on progress monitoring and specialized instruction.

These are not hypothetical risks; they are the predictable consequences of insufficient staffing.

I understand the district’s financial challenges, and I do not envy the decisions that must be made. But understaffing special education rarely saves money long‑term. Instead, it leads to compensatory education costs, increased disputes, higher remediation needs and greater strain on general education teachers.

This moment calls for partnership rooted in evidence, not cuts that undermine the very goals the state has set. I support Granite because I know how deeply the district cares about its students. But at this point, there is only one ethically, morally, and long‑term fiscally responsible choice.

I hope Granite will choose the path that truly puts students first by retaining a full-time special education teacher at Morningside Elementary.

Danielle Housman is a certified dyslexia practitioner (CALP) and occupational therapist committed to advancing equitable opportunities for people with physical, cognitive and learning disabilities. She is a proud mother of two amazing dyslexic sons in Granite School District.

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