LAUSD special ed classes were meant to be smaller this fall. Teachers are worried it won’t happen

Summary by The Los Angeles Editorial Desk · Based on reporting by Maya Mukherjee, LAist (KPCC / Southern California Public Radio) · July 20, 2026 · 5 min read

A special education class at Redwood Heights Elementary School in Oakland. (Alison Yin / EdSource) 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....

Why this matters in The Los Angeles

The looming large class sizes in LAUSD special education classes pose a significant challenge for the district's ability to provide adequate support to its over 70,000 students with special needs. With 22 open positions for full-time special education teachers and three vacancies for integrated class teachers, the district's staffing shortages could exacerbate the issue. The growth in special education enrollment, which has outpaced the decline in overall student enrollment, underscores the need for the district to prioritize hiring more educators. The fact that the union negotiated a first-ever limit on class sizes this spring suggests that there is recognition of the problem, but the district's lack of concrete plans to address staffing needs raises concerns about its commitment to implementing meaningful change. As the new school year approaches, the district's ability to hire and retain special education teachers will be crucial in determining the quality of education its students with special needs receive.

About this story

Original reporting by LAist (KPCC / Southern California Public Radio). The Los Angeles surfaces reporting from trusted publishers and adds local editorial context so readers can quickly understand what a story means for their community. We attribute every source, link to the original report, and follow a documented editorial standards policy. To understand how stories are selected and reviewed, read our about page.

For the complete original report, visit LAist (KPCC / Southern California Public Radio). Have a tip or correction? Contact our newsroom.

Category: schools · Published: July 20, 2026 · Source: LAist (KPCC / Southern California Public Radio) · Reading time: 5 min

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Summary created by	The Los Angeles Editorial Desk — automated, rule-governed
Original reporting	Maya Mukherjee, LAist (KPCC / Southern California Public Radio)
Original story	Read at the source
Source published	Jul 20, 2026
Indexed here	Jul 21, 2026
AI assistance	Automated summary drawn from the source’s own published text
Prepublication human review	No — editorial rules, flagged-item review, and published samples

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