North Allegheny School Board OKs resolution to lay off some library secretary positions

The North Allegheny School Board approved a resolution to reduce the number of library secretary paraprofessionals from 12 to six effective with the 2023-2024 school year.

The board approved the resolution on Nov. 16 by a vote of 5-3 following about 45 minute of public comment, in which most of it came in opposition to the measure.

“This resolution came as a very unpleasant surprise,” said Sharon Smith, a library secretary at North Allegheny Senior High.

“This staffing is crucial to an effective school library,” she said, adding students will suffer, and the library will be “thrown totally off balance.”

Speakers said library secretaries helps manage students when the librarian is teaching a class or doing other duties. Cutting the paraprofessionals would strain the system.

NA resident Joe Birch stated “money saved can be better sent to more pressing needs.”

Several people held “Keep all 12” signs, either cheering on or “booing” comments.

The cost savings would be approximately $300,000, according to superintendent Dr. Melissa Friez. The resolution stated that the school board “finds it necessary for reasons of economy to reconfigure the operations of the District library program.”

There are 12 full-time paraprofessional library secretaries — one at each of the 12 schools in the district.

School board directors Elizabeth Blackburn, Marcie Crow, Richard McClure, Dr. Vidya Szymkowiak and Michael Weniger voted in favor of the resolution. Shannon Yeakel abstained.

School directors Leslie Britton Dozier, Paige Hardy and Elizabeth Warner voted against it. Warner said the cost savings is too small and not worth the effects on the library program.

Warner suggested utilizing attrition to cut staff rather than lay offs.

McClure, school board president, said the school board and administration met with the librarian union twice about the issue.

The library secretary paraprofessionals were formerly part-time positions, according to Szymkowiak. The school district added positions in the 2017-2018 school year, which resulted in being able to staff 12 full-time library secretaries, according to Marijane Treacy, North Allegheny’s director of human resources.

Szymkowiak said the district could chose to revert all the library secretary positions to part time. But keeping six of them at full time would at least preserve their full-time pay and benefits.

Crow said the library is not the only place affected by cuts and reorganization. Other positions have been eliminated, such as one of two secretaries for the superintendent and central administrative office.

“Nobody is going after librarians. This is not an attack on literacy. (We) never talked about eliminating librarians,” Crow said. “We have been assured by administration that the libraries will be covered.”

Blackburn said though it’s just $300,000, small savings add up.

“There have been other cuts. We just always have to look at everything,” Blackburn said.

Several school board directors on both sides of the vote supported Friez, who assured them an effective plan could be developed to ensure the libraries will not close and that education will not be affected.

The library positions will be laid off in reverse order of seniority, according to the resolution.

McClure said a next step is to develop a plan for the libraries and staff.

Weniger stated if the district finds the plan isn’t working, it can always revisit the issue.

Also, school administration and board hope to offer a path to other positions in the district for for those who will be laid off, McClure said.

The state Department of Education’s guidelines for paraprofessional staff indicate a paraprofessional provides instructional support under the direction of a properly certified teacher.

Paraprofessionals also may perform non-instructional duties, such as monitoring study hall, recess or the cafeteria, under the direction of certified teacher or supervisor.