The Albert Lea school board voted Monday to eliminate 20 part-time para-educator positions.

Keith Erickson, director of special services for the district, said he’d researched the average number of para-educators in school districts in southeast Minnesota and said Albert Lea’s district has more para-educators than most.

“The district will continue to employ para-educators,” Erickson said.

He estimated there will still be more than 90 para-educator positions in the district after the cuts. Erickson also said he’d rather cut these non-licensed teachers who “control behavior” in favor of hiring licensed staff who have to ability to change behavior.

School board member Jeshua Erickson asked how the district got to the point of having a surplus, and Erickson responded that principals had been advocating for more staff because of the significant number of children with academic needs.

Superintendent Mike Funk also gave the board an update on how the district will be affected by some of the things happening in the state Legislature. He said there are some positives for the district, but that he’s worried about education in the state as a whole with some recent decisions. One of the positive changes for Albert Lea’s district is that special education funding will not be frozen, which the district had been expecting. The district was also selected as one of five in the state for a compensatory pilot program, which means the district will receive $150,000 a year for two years with a goal of increasing student achievement.

The board also heard from Jim Quiram, director of human resources and technology for the district, about an initiative that may put about 250 iPad devices in the schools soon. Quiram’s presentation told board members the iPads would most likely go to all second-graders and to a mobile unit of 30 devices in Southwest Middle School and two mobile units or 30 each at Albert Lea High School.

“We really think it will increase student achievement,” Quiram said.

Funk said the district has toured other schools using the devices and said he didn’t want the district to rush into using them without properly training teachers first. The board was getting an update on the possible initiative but took no action.

“We’re posturing ourselves for something like this, but it doesn’t have to be done right away,” Funk said.

The cost for the entire program with all equipment and training for the iPads would be around $210,000, and Quiram said the money has already been set aside in the technology budget for this initiative.

In other action, the school board:

• Decided to discuss at the next workshop on Aug. 1 what to do with the board position vacated by Sally Ehrhardt. The board will have the option to appoint someone but still needs to discuss how to proceed and all the options, including interviewing potential candidates.

Board chairman Bill Leland declined to comment on the circumstances surrounding Ehrhardt stepping down earlier this month.

• Discussed the naming of district facilities after receiving a letter about the possibility of naming the high school’s tennis courts after a local man. The board decided they’d rather have plaques put up in honor of individuals instead of having to consider naming all facilities in the future.

• Heard from the district’s energy manager, Steve Lund, about the energy used during the 2010-11 school year. He said the schools have been working to reduce energy use since 2004, which has kept energy costs down when utility costs have been increasing.

• Heard from high school choir director Diane Heaney about the choir’s recent trip to England and Scotland. Heaney showed photos of the various spots the choir and chaperones visited and spoke about the trip. She thanked the board for the opportunity and said travel helps change the students’ perspectives.

• Established a Truth in Taxation hearing for Dec. 5.