June 20, 2019, Hollister, CA, Benito Link: Hollister School District fills Special Education positions https://benitolink.com/hollister-school-district-fills-special-education-positions/ Four bilingual school psychologists among new hires. Recent Hollister School District (HSD) employee recruitment efforts are working to address the need for special education staff in the district. Beginning in February, district administration developed a plan to assertively recruit new school psychologists, occupational therapists, nurses, board certified behavior analysts and special education teachers…. The results from the CSUMB event were promising, as the district was able to secure four new bilingual school psychologist hires for the 2019-2020 school year. The Hollister School District director subsequently sent recruitment teams to Fresno State, Sacramento State and the San Benito County Office of Education recruitment event. Special Education Director Gwen Baquiran who attended these events said, “I’m very proud of the way our district took proactive steps to recruit new employees for our special education program. We have now hired a bilingual occupational therapist, board certified behavior analyst, and multiple special education teachers.” The Hollister School District has recently made headlines due to systemic issues related to its special education program. Said Ochoa: “Strengthening the Special Education department in the Hollister School District is one of my top priorities. The goal from February through June was to recruit permanent staff and we’ve succeeded thus far. The focus will now shift to developing strong policies and procedures, establishing a new Parent of Children with Special Needs Advisory Committee, and improving the curriculum for special education programs throughout the district.”
