As Superintendent Michelle Kuss-Cybula said during a legislative forum held Dec. 15, advocacy for funds is imperative for Oak Harbor Public Schools to function efficiently.

Two weeks ago, state Rep. Clyde Shavers, Rep. Dave Paul and Sen. Ron Muzzall sat down with the Oak Harbor School Board to discuss district priorities — fully funding special education programs, increasing staff to address mental health and special needs and to engage with families, and advocating at the state and federal level to receive funds to support the Impact Aid program.

Among the many school districts in the state, Oak Harbor stands out for having a special needs student population that is larger than average. Naval Air Station Whidbey Island is in fact an Exceptional Family Member program base, which leads to many families with special needs children to enroll their kids in the district.

According to information presented during the meeting, about 1,200 students — or 20% of the student body — have special needs, which is above the 15% cap in state funding. The district also estimates that 36% of the students with special needs have severe disabilities that require specialized care and instruction.

These demographics have been overwhelming the district, which had a $6.6 million budget shortfall to fund special education services last year. As a result, the school lacks the funds and trained staff to meet the unique needs of so many students.

Currently, the school only receives enough funding to pay for less than two full-time mental health counselors to support the mental wellbeing of 5,500 students. Since the pandemic, the school has seen a 32% increase in substance abuse reports, according to information provided at the forum.

While more than 80% of public schools around the country report negative trends in student behavior and socio-emotional development since the pandemic, the district does not receive the funding to staff deans of students who can provide support with discipline and behavioral interventions.

Additionally, Oak Harbor Public Schools only receive funding to pay for a part-time family involvement coordinator who supports the more than 300 Oak Harbor students under the McKinney-Vento program. The McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Act provides support for homeless children and youth that allows them to stay in school. Since the pandemic, the number of students under the program has increased by 26%, according to the data.

In an interview, Paul said special education and mental health are top priorities, and that he will continue to advocate for more funding in the legislature to bring more school counselors and nurses and to provide year-round support to students who are struggling with their mental health, even during the summer months when schools are closed.

Shavers said he will continue to advocate for the cap to be raised so that every student with special needs can achieve success with tools tailored for their unique needs.

During the legislative session in Olympia, he will support the improvement of a bill by Rep. Lisa Callan that did not get enough votes in last year’s legislative session. Though he could not provide details on what the new bill would look like, its previous version proposed the elimination of isolation and the reduction of restraint, instead focusing on providing the right resources and training to deal with a mental crisis.

Shavers believes there should be a balance that can keep students, staff and teachers safe while also ensuring students don’t harm themselves during a crisis.

The Impact Aid program reimburses school districts for the revenue they’ve lost to non-taxable federal property, such as a military installation like NAS Whidbey. Every year, Oak Harbor receives about $8 million, which is still less compared to other school districts. In fact, the Impact Aid only provides 10 cents for every dollar the district would receive in local taxes.

About $6 million of the Impact Aid revenue is spent on special education programs, while the rest support transportation, the Learning Assistance Program and the transitional bilingual program.

According to Executive Director of Business Services Vicki Williams, the school is very susceptible to the timeliness of Impact Aid payments.

“We were supposed to receive our impact aid payment back in April, but didn’t receive it until November of this year, which resulted in a million dollar hit to our reserve savings,” she said during the meeting.