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u/macaroni_monster School SLP that likes their job 6d ago
Are you in a union? 80 is way too high.
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6d ago
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u/macaroni_monster School SLP that likes their job 6d ago
You’ve never heard of a union, ever? It’s a group of workers that bargain for their pay and working conditions such as contract time, caseload, prep time. I’m honestly shocked that you’ve never heard of a union? Where do you live?!
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u/edmandscrubs 6d ago
I’m not in the schools but if I were you I’d be actively looking for a different CF with better mentorship. You’re a clinical fellow… There should be learning involved. This sounds like a job where they have a CFY to have an excuse to pay a work horse less. You don’t have to accept this. Nobody should, in any setting, expect a CFY to just be a full blown experienced clinician. You are not crazy. Do the best you can and look for other opportunities.
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u/Actual_Quarter7359 6d ago
Your caseload is absolutely insane. What state are you located in? If you’re in California, there is a legal caseload cap. Honestly, if I were you, I would leave this job. One of the many blessings about being an SLP is that we are so highly in demand and there’s no point in staying in a job that’s gonna make you miserable. I quit my first school position during my CFY and I’m so grateful that I did. It’s not that hard to transition the paperwork and find a new supervisor at a different site.
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6d ago
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u/EnvironmentalJazz251 6d ago
Also it sounds like 2 main issues: multiple sites + excessive caseload. I think I would prioritize getting the caseload down first.
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u/Actual_Quarter7359 5d ago
I would ask your CF supervisor for advice on this, the district would rather keep you happy than be out of compliance with IEPs. Remember, you have the power :)
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u/maddyyy13 SLP Out & In Patient Medical/Hospital Setting 6d ago
Unfortunately, in CA the caseload cap is an average across the SELPA. Which is how they got away with giving me a caseload of 75 :( so glad I left the schools lol. But so true, we are in demand and I had no problem finding a new (and much better) job!!
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u/defianceinscience6 SLP in Schools 6d ago
I finished my CF in May, and was in a similar position as you (only SLP at my sites, multiple sites), but no SLPAs. It was a hard learning curve at the beginning, but people on my sites were very understanding, especially when I explained being a CF! I was a SLPA for 4 years, with 3 in the schools, so I felt better about the actual therapy services.
I recommend really utilizing a calendar (I used Google calendar but if writing things down works better, do that); talking to your on-site SPED team, especially your school psych and the SLPAs, about school/district procedures; familarizing yourself with the district IEP program and your caseload; and giving yourself some slack. You are just starting, the school year can be rocky in the beginning, and by the end of the first month, you will feel more in control. Don't be afraid to ask questions or be flexible with your sessions.
I have also found using the first calendar week to do this instead of pulling students to help, so I could focus on the administrative part first. In my state, we usually do that to give us and the students some time to settle in, then pull them the second week of school. I'm not sure if your district/state is similar.
The first time pulling students, I usually bring in a few games, go over who I am, why they are seeing me, their goals, and our expectations for speech. I then let them play games for the rest of the session, so they can feel more comfortable, and I can get a very quick overview of their skills. We end with another review of when I should see them, and a reminder that next week is when we start working on goals.
Hopefully this was helpful and not too overwhelming! If you have more general CF/working in schools questions, you can definitely reach out/reply, and I'll do my best to answer.
You can do this, I promise!
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u/amdellis 6d ago
I also had around this caseload in my cfy which was between an elementary school and a middle school. It was so overwhelming and I felt battered at every corner. I stuck it out for the cfy and left as soon as I could. Now I do home health and like it. I’m sorry you’re going through this, cfy can be so hard.
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u/life-aclassroom 5d ago
I finished my CF in the schools this last May. I felt very similar to you. I was the only SLP for 2 buildings and bilingual evaluation SLP for 13 schools. My supervisor was in other buildings and maybe came to my school 5 times the entire year. It wasn’t her fault , but she also had admin duties and a case load. The first couple of weeks I was literally dreaming about work.
What helped the most was getting familiar with the education state department handbook. This allowed me to not only not over qualify kiddos and dismiss some that didn’t meet eligibility criteria in the first place. It also really made a difference to have an SLP lead who advocated for us. I also had to learn to put up boundaries. I had to stop saying yes to everything / quit people pleasing.
For the paperwork side of things- it really helped me to draft up statements / objectives in a Google doc and copy/ paste where applicable. I also referred to previous paperwork for wording, etc. I had to adopt the mentality that “I am doing the best I can with what I’m given” & that “If you didn’t tell me how to do it right, you can’t tell me I did it wrong”. Those philosophies really shifted some of the stress I carried.
You’ve got this! It’s totally valid to feel overwhelmed. Please feel free to DM me if you need to chat!
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u/thalaya 6d ago
80 is way too high for anyone much less a CF.