Los Angeles: SPED numbers up over 7%, enrollment down 4% over four yrs

July 20, 2026, LAIST: LAUSD special ed

Los Angeles Unified special education teachers and parents are bracing for another year of large classes when the new school year begins, despite a first-ever limit the union negotiated this spring.

With booming special education enrollment, teachers say the district needs to hire more full-time staff to ensure tens of thousands of students receive the extra support they need — and are legally entitled to — every day.

Under the new contract ratified by UTLA, resource services teachers are limited to supporting 20 students each in integrated classes which include both special and general education students. Resource services teachers are designated to students and collaborate with other teachers to support them.

Classrooms with only special education students have different ratios, and those teachers qualify for a monthly stipend of $500 to $1,000, depending on how many students over the limit they have.

But teachers say that although the extra pay doesn't hurt, they want the district to focus on making both kinds of classes smaller.

Debby Schneider, a special education teacher and UTLA committee chair, told LAist that it’s not about the money. . . .

, she said she’s concerned this year won’t be any different.

As of July 17, there were 22 open positions for teachers in full-time special education classrooms, and three vacancies for those who work in integrated classes.

There are over 70,000 students enrolled in LAUSD’s special education services, which include support for learning disabilities,  autism, and hearing and visual impairments. A district spokesperson wouldn't specify how many integrated classrooms are overfilled. The district is “continuously assessing staffing needs,” the district wrote in a statement, but would not comment on specific plans to hire more special ed teachers for the upcoming year.

A growing need

According to UTLA, the number of students in LAUSD’s special education services has grown over 7% since 2022, even though overall student enrollment is down by nearly 4%.

Emily Kolman, whose kindergartner receives speech therapy services, said that resources are overextended and the district isn’t doing much to help. . . .

Teachers are burning out too

Some teachers said their colleagues are leaving the classroom because they’re stretched too thin to handle student behavior, or because they don’t feel supported by their school’s administration.

According to EdSource, LAUSD’s special education teacher retention rate dropped from 90% to 77% between 2021 and 2024. . . .