July 31, 2018, WBIR, Knoxville, TN: KCS to consider incentives to fill 22 special education teaching positions https://www.wbir.com/article/news/local/kcs-to-consider-incentives-to-fill-22-special-education-teaching-positions/51-578960896 A Knox County School official is proposing recruitment incentives for newly hired teachers in the hopes of filling more than 20 vacant special education teaching positions, according to a memorandum. In the July 20 memorandum from KCS Executive Director of Human Resources, Dr. Kelly Drummond requests a $2,400 incentive for up to 10 teachers — a total of $24,000 already designated within the budget for tuition reimbursement…. The item is on the agenda for the August 8 Board of Education meeting. "Parents can be assured that on the very first day we'll have good, solid instruction going on, we have a plan to support the people that are working in that classroom until we get those teachers hired," Massie said. KCS leaders point to a nationwide demand for teachers and special education teachers. KCS leaders say there are about 8,000 students who use about 400 special education teachers. In May, 10News reported that there are more than 800 KCS students with autism, up from more than 500 in 2009. …
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Childhood Lost
Children today are noticeably different from previous generations, and the proof is in the news coverage we see every day. This site shows you what’s happening in schools around the world. Children are increasingly disabled and chronically ill, and the education system has to accommodate them. Things we've long associated with autism, like sensory issues, repetitive behaviors, anxiety and lack of social skills, are now problems affecting mainstream students. Blame is predictably placed on bad parenting (otherwise known as trauma from home).
Addressing mental health needs is as important as academics for modern educators. This is an unrecognized disaster. The stories here are about children who can’t learn or behave like children have always been expected to. What childhood has become is a chilling portent for the future of mankind.
Anne Dachel, Media editor, Age of Autism
http://www.ageofautism.com/media/
(John Dachel, Tech. assist.)
What will happen in another 4 years? How can we go on like this? This is a national (and international) problem of monumental proportions. We have an entire new class of children who cannot be accommodated by the system: many are manifestly neurologically impaired. Meanwhile, the government and the medical profession sleep on regardless.
John Stone,
UK media editor, Age of Autism
The generation of American children born after 1990 are arguably the sickest generation in the history of our country.
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
It seemed to me that with rising autism prevalence, you’d also see rising autism costs to society, and it turns out, the costs are catastrophic.
They calculated that in 2015 autism cost the United States $268 billion and they projected that if autism continues at its current rate, we’re looking at one trillion dollars a year in autism costs by 2025, so within five years.
Toby Rogers, PhD, Political economist
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