Omaha special education teachers say why they love the job

A high-five in the hallway. A class completed without disruptive behavior. A child learning to trust again.

Everything pays off when a student’s eyes light up in an “aha!” moment or when a child is able to use coping skills for the first time without being told.

Staffing shortages have hit special education programs hard in Nebraska and across the nation. In the Omaha Public Schools, which is short 120 special education teachers, the district has had to merge classrooms, boost caseloads and even transfer students to other schools.

But those who remain in the field talk about overcoming such challenges in order to teach and care for students who need the most help.

The World-Herald interviewed four OPS special education teachers in the district about their work and why they stay in the field.

Two of the teachers, both from the same family, say they are currently in their dream jobs at the district’s Integrated Learning Program (ILP), located inside Saratoga Elementary in North Omaha. The program serves students in kindergarten through the age of 21. Students who receive special education services can be referred there if they aren’t thriving in other OPS schools because of increased social, emotional or behavioral needs.

The specialized program has a low student-to-teacher ratio and different instruction to help students get back on track and return to their original school.

It’s Elizabeth Officer-Thurston’s fourth year at ILP. She was previously at Monroe Middle School for 19 years but felt a calling to make a difference with students who had disruptive behaviors.

“When I initially came here, people were like, ‘Oh, my gosh, she’s going to ILP? That is the behavior school. Is she crazy?’” Officer-Thurston said. “After being at Monroe for so long, I was just like, ‘I need to be with the behavior kids, because that’s where my heart is. They need somebody to love them. They need somebody to care about them.’”

Officer-Thurston used to teach a few grades separately, but now is teaching nine students in a combined class of fourth, fifth and sixth graders because a group of teachers for elementary grades left last year.

She said shifting between different grade levels has been a challenge, but it’s rewarding when she can make gains with each of her students.

Officer-Thurston does a great job adapting to the staff shortage and utilizing the resources she has, said her daughter-in-law, Kalie Thurston, who also teaches at ILP. In order to cater to each grade level, Officer-Thurston will do whole group instruction, but then pull aside individual students as needed.

“It’s amazing to watch her do what she does, because she’s adapting and working with multiple different people trying to give them what they need,” Thurston said. “When she first started, she was so overwhelmed — this is a person who will go home and work until two in the morning because these kids are always on her mind. Having her here at ILP really, really helps me.”

Thurston has been teaching in the alternative curriculum program at ILP for almost two years. She said she uses two different curriculums because her group of eight students are at middle school, high school and post-high school age. A lot of the work centers around fine motor or life skills.

Students in Thurston’s class can often have strong behaviors and even get into physical altercations. She said she has behavior plans for each student, with each plan containing protocols for when behaviors escalate.

“They’re lovely and they are smart in their own ways, but it can turn on a drop of a dime,” Thurston said. “It’s an emotional whirlwind … I could have a kid that is yelling and screaming and hitting himself. Then I’m like, ‘OK, why is this happening? He could hit me, or he could flip his table, or he’s hungry. Then what do we have to do next? Get him some food and get him to a calm place to relax.’ “

Thurston said she thinks special education teachers have something in their hearts that guided their decision to enter the field.

“These kids deserve so much love,” Thurston said. “My parents tell me every single day, ‘I don’t know how you can do your job and go back and love it every day.’ It’s because it’s a new day, every single day. I come back with a different mindset every single day.”

‘Every day is different’

For Deborah Reed, the opportunity to be creative and think on her feet to serve specific students is why she loves to work in special education at Benson High School. Reed is a co-teacher in English classes, because many high schools have both special education and general education students in the same classroom.

Reed said one of her students can’t sit still and she will let him walk around the classroom instead of being stationed at his desk. She’ll also ask if he needs to go for a walk to take a break from class.

“I think what I love most about the job is getting to know the kids,” Reed said. “Also working with my colleagues every day. Every day is different, and you don’t know what’s going to happen.”

As a co-teacher, Reed helps specific students troubleshoot problems in class or assists others with taking tests. She’s been there since 2015 except for when she took a break from teaching altogether last year.

“After COVID and everything, I just kind of needed a reset. And so I decided that I just needed time,” Reed said. “I came back refreshed. So it was the right decision.”

Mike Duggan, director of the special education department at Benson High, said the pandemic brought an increased desire to be more intentional with student relationships. He said it was critical to give students hope during that time, especially when many were making transitions between grades.

Duggan said Benson staff had to get creative through teacher shortages in OPS, such as increasing communication and allowing teachers more time to serve students.

“We were able to be more intentional with how we can support (students) and service them,” Duggan said. “(Such as) if there are different ways that we can go about making sure that we’re checking in with them more frequently … making sure that they felt like they were supported.”

As an 18-year veteran Benson High staff member, Duggan said his experience receiving special education services in school fueled him to help others as an adult. His favorite part of the job is watching students grow.

“It’s hard trying to support and provide structure — it happens at different times for different kids, so there’s not a one-size-fits-all approach,” he said. “So it’s kind of giving them that hope and that support and then when it clicks, that’s a great moment.”

But special education teachers need more to keep them in the field, said Amanda Witte, a professor with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools.

Witte is co-director of a statewide project called Get SET Nebraska, a mentorship and professional development program designed to support special education teachers and school administrators. Currently, 37 school districts around Nebraska are participating in the program, which is helping schools discover ways to retain special education staff. The program will open to all schools and the public later this spring.

Witte said a common challenge for special education teachers is the amount of time needed to complete required paperwork. They also often don’t feel supported by their administrators.

“(We) really focus on helping administrators be better administrators for special education teachers. A lot of times, many administrators don’t know necessarily a lot about what it is to be a special education teacher,” Witte said. “We help them identify ways that they might reduce some of those time burdens. Also, helping administrators understand what might be a reasonable caseload.”

Kathy Poehling, president of the Omaha Education Association, said high caseloads are a common concern for OPS teachers, including transferring students to other schools that have no special education teacher, which increases the caseload for the receiving educator. This happened in August to three elementary schools in North Omaha, triggering a special legislative meeting about the action a month later.

Poehling said the district is also currently working on addressing teacher needs in special education. In January, OPS raised the extra compensation rate paid to special educators since they have to complete work outside of school. The extra compensation went up from 7% to 10% of their salary.

While it’s important to focus on improving the special education teacher shortage, it’s crucial to celebrate educators in the field, Witte said.

“When I talk to special education teachers, they have really amazing stories about the difference that they can make in a truly short amount of time in the lives of children but also their family,” Witte said. “It is a truly most powerful job.”