One-on-One: Prevalence and Predictors of Paraeducator Service Utilization for Autism-Eligible Students in Schools

Paraeducator support is an increasingly common school-based special education service. However, few studies have examined the prevalence of paraeducator services in large samples, and no studies have examined predictors of paraeducator support. The present study utilized special education administrative records (2010–2019) from a large urban school district to determine prevalence, timing, and predictors of paraeducator services for students receiving special education services under autism. Students with autism received the majority of paraeducator services in all academic years ( N  = 4,385). Most autistic students first received paraeducator services before grade 3 (56.50%) and retained paraeducator services for 1 or 2 years (58%), though 42% received paraeducator services for 3 or more years. White students were more likely to receive paraeducator services compared to nearly all other race/ethnicity groups (African American, Hispanic, Filipino). Students eligible for free/reduced-price lunch were less likely than students ineligible to receive paraeducator services.