Nov. 19 -- EDITOR'S NOTE -- This article previously stated that instructional support services would need to be cut by 12%, but they are being cut by 31%. The article has been edited to reflect this correction. Guidance counselors are currently 3% of the budget, and the district said they will need to be cut by 12%.

Ashley Kirven-Bobier's son, a second-grader at Skyline Elementary School, is enjoying himself at school this year and learning more than ever -- but it wasn't always like that.

Her son was diagnosed with autism last year in first grade, and it's not been an easy road helping him acclimate to school.

But now Kirven-Bobier has a new worry -- that he may digress with budget cuts coming to special education services and instructional support staff at Stillwater Public Schools.

Student support services, which represent 10% of the General Fund, would need to be cut nearly 30%. Instructional support services, currently at 4% of the budget, would need to be cut by 31%.

Kirven-Bobier is a member of the Stillwater Autism Parent Group, a local group on Facebook that shares tips for parents and ways to support their children with autism. The group started last summer because parents were looking for low-sensory activities for their children in the community.

"We (wanted to) share opportunities with one another, because we know it's hard to find those kinds of things for our kiddos," Kirven-Bobier told the News Press.

Then a fellow parent shared with the group that the Stillwater Public Schools Board of Education would be voting Nov. 12 on budget cuts for school staff, particularly for instructional and student support services in the 2025-26 academic school year.

"That would cover IEP support and paraprofessionals and reading specialists," Kirven-Bobier said. "And those are all things that affect my son."

At the meeting, Kirven-Bobier shared her concerns with the school board, emphasizing how her son has changed in the past year, and asking them to reconsider the budget cuts for instructional and special services staff.

"The success that he's seeing this year is because of all of those special supports that he's received, so that was concerning for me," she said. "I wanted to come and share my story."

During the process of her son's diagnosis with autism, Kirven-Bobier wasn't sure how to best support her son at school.

"He was having multiple meltdowns a day, and the environment was so overwhelming for him," Kirven-Bobier said.

School administrators, her son's teacher and mental health counselors were trying different approaches to help him, but those methods would change every day as no one knew what to expect.

"When you're autistic, you're very dependent on routine," she said. "And so that uncertainty with what he was going to be facing at school, combined with being overwhelmed and having meltdowns, it just totally pushed him over the edge, and he went into burnout and started experiencing school refusal."

Kirven-Bobier said getting her son out the door to school every day became a battle. For three months, her son had multiple meltdowns a day, which lasted anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes. He missed a lot of instructional time because her family and school staff were just trying to get him into the school every day.

"It's really hard on the whole family," she said.

She said her son couldn't be in the main classroom with his other classmates, but had to stay in the special education room full-time. The family worked with Special Services Director and Behavior Analyst Austin Hula to complete a "functional behavior assessment" to decide what was triggering her son.

Eventually, she said her son's school day was cut to one hour a day. He began working with Special Services Instructor Rachel Horschler at Skyline.

"(She) is absolutely amazing," Kirven-Bobier said. "I cannot speak highly enough of her and her team of paraprofessionals."

Over the past spring, her son began to feel safe and learned to trust his instructors.

"He was doing better and better, and he was slowly coming out of burnout and going to school was becoming easier for him," Kirven-Bobier said.

By the end of the last school year, he was attending school until noon. This year, she said, they all "held their breath" as they started him in the main classroom for a full day.

Halfway through the first day, school administrators called.

"I was like, 'Oh, my gosh, here we go,'" she said. "But it was (the principal) calling and was saying, 'He is having a fantastic day.'"

Kirven-Bobier said Principal Natalie Fluty related how her son was participating in class, went to P.E., went to lunch with his friends and to recess.

"This is like a total 180 from where we were last year," she said, adding that she cried when she got the call. "I cannot believe that he is able to do these things."

Her son takes short breaks with staff, but he can now voice when he needs to take a break, and Kirven-Bobier said that step is "a huge win for him to be able to speak up."

But she's concerned about larger class sizes if the district has to make adjustments. Homeschooling isn't an option, as she and her spouse both work full-time.

The district serves hundreds of students on IEP and 504 education plans.

"The IEP and 504 numbers fluctuate daily," said Melisa Kifer, executive director of Special Services at SPS.

As of Tuesday, there were 1,119 students with IEPs and 498 students with 504s, she said.

During the Nov. 12 Board of Education meeting, Acting Superintendent Janet Vinson said she appreciated the comments regarding special education staff, and the parent feedback about ensuring that the district stays compliant with IEP and legislative requirements.

"I can assure you that any proposed cuts to special education came directly from Special Services," Vinson said. "They were cuts that they recommended."

Kirven-Bobier's son started the year not knowing how to read, but has made progress working with a reading specialist four days a week. She is afraid he will digress if that instructional support is gone.

"He's showing signs now of being dyslexic, so he's going to continue to need that specialized reading support," Kirven-Bobier said. "... He is starting to read words by himself, and the progress that he is making is mind-blowing."

Kirven-Bobier had nothing but praise for all of the staff who helped her son. But she said she wouldn't have known about the budget cuts if her friend hadn't posted about it in the Facebook group.

"Now I'm going to be more aware moving forward and kind of keep an eye on things," Kirven-Bobier said. "... I know that they were kind of backed into a corner, and it seems like they didn't really have a choice, but it's just really disheartening to see that it came to that."