When it comes to toileting, guidelines from the New York State Education Department can’t come fast enough.
In June, the state Legislature passed new legislation that requires SED to establish uniform statewide protocols for diapering and toileting students in public schools. The bill was the result of years of successful advocacy and lobbying by NYSUT members. The protocols are expected by spring of 2026.
“This bill, it came from our SRP committee,” said Jo Ann Sweat, president of the Buffalo Education Support Team and member of the SRP Advisory Committee. “This is very important, because it doesn’t just affect us, it affects our students and families.”
While the common assumption may be that general education students are potty-trained by the time they reach pre-K, being potty-trained is not, in fact, a required skill for students, and they can’t be excluded from kindergarten or prekindergarten because of it, Sweat said.
Instead, school staff – usually school-related professionals – are responsible for both teaching students how to use the bathroom independently, and for diapering them, changing them, and cleaning up after them until they do.
Students may also require diapering or toilet training due to physical or mental health conditions, Sweat said. In addition to PS 84, a K-12 school for students with severe disabilities and illnesses, there are dozens of 8:1:3 classrooms across Buffalo’s 60 school buildings where some or all of the students need assistance with toileting, Sweat said.
Currently, it is up to individual districts to establish toileting and diapering procedures, creating a patchwork of guidelines which vary greatly from school to school. SRPs object to the lack of training and logistical support they receive from districts when it comes to caring for these students, Sweat said.
The state ed regulations are expected to provide basic guidelines for educators, and specify what facilities and equipment are necessary to perform these operations safely, including gloves, gowns, and other PPE as well as changing tables, lifts, slings or other mobility aids.
For Taghreed Elkashef, an aide at Berea Elementary School and member of Valley Central Teachers Association School Related Professionals, the issue is about having the right tools for the job.
“What equipment do my paras need for helping kindergartners wearing diapers? Because we have those,” Elkashef asked during a recent toileting workshop at the NYSUT School-Related Professionals Leadership Conference. “We’re not trained for that. We’re not paid for that, so there’s something wrong.”
Without regulations from the state, some districts have been acting fast and loose with their approaches to this issue. “They said I should change my student on the floor,” said Terry Spiva, an aide and member of the Rochester Association of Paraprofessionals. Spiva works with 5- to 7-year-olds who have autism and are nonverbal. “I said, ‘No, you are not going to put my kid on the floor.’” In the end, Spiva was able to successfully advocate for a changing table, but the single table doesn’t accommodate all the students who need it, she said.
Safety is a very real concern for SRPs. Toileting comes with a risk of exposure to blood-borne pathogens and high incidence of musculoskeletal injury, and without proper training and equipment, SRPs are at risk. In fact, studies have shown that childcare and healthcare workers have a higher rate of chronic pain and workplace injuries than many other professions.
“Kids squirm. They sass. Sometimes they kick you,” said Spiva. “Sometimes they’re just dead weight.”
Legal liability is another issue for SRPs, who are advised to always keep children within their line of sight during toileting, diapering and handwashing, and to have two adults present when assisting children with removing their clothing, changing diapers, cleaning their bodies after toileting, or getting dressed, even though districts don’t always make provisions for that to happen.
Adequate compensation is another important issue, and SRPs hope the guidelines will pave the way for salary discussions around this evolving set of responsibilities.
For Ramona Rodriguez, a teaching assistant and member of the Mount Vernon Federation of Teachers, the new toileting legislation is about preserving students’ dignity.
Last year, Rodriguez was a one-to-one para for a 20-year-old nonverbal student at Mt. Vernon High School who frequently soiled herself on the bus to school, alienating her from other students and creating a health hazard. When the bus company made a complaint to the student’s parents, Rodriguez was able to work with the child’s mother to come to a solution that involved diapering and a change in meds, but Rodriguez would have appreciated some support from the district on the issue. “It’s a partnership, and we need to do it together, for the well-being of the kids,” she said.