Tumwater district reports 122 FTE drop in September; board warned of roughly $1M budget shortfall

At the meeting, Assistant Superintendent Ben Rearick and Kara Acker, director of financial services, presented the September 2025 enrollment and budget update. Rearick said district FTE across K–12 is “down 122 FTE from last September” and that the district’s brick‑and‑mortar K‑12 count was 5,554 FTE on that day. Acker explained that the district was about “92, almost 93 below budget at this point,” which board members translated in discussion as a roughly million‑dollar‑plus budget impact if the shortfall persists.

Board members focused on the kindergarten drop, cohort effects and next steps. Directors noted kindergarten is a historically sensitive cohort (children born around the COVID era), and several asked staff to track where missing students enrolled—homeschool, private schools, other districts, running start, or delayed entry. Rearick said staff will investigate enrollment destinations, work with the Educational Service District for regional comparisons, and follow up on whether families opted for homeschooling or alternative programs.

Fiscal controls and follow‑up - Immediate controls: Kara Acker said spending restraints remain in place (reduced travel, tighter supply budgets and scrutiny of purchases) and the district is monitoring spending closely. - Planning and staffing: staff said personnel costs (the major share of the budget) are the most difficult to adjust mid‑year because of contractual and operational concerns; the board reviewed potential approaches but did not instruct specific layoffs or reductions at the meeting. - Data follow‑up: staff committed to provide more granular cohort tracking, outreach to families who did not enroll, and comparative data from the ESD to see whether the enrollment decline is regional.

Discussion vs. decision - Discussion: the board discussed causes for the kindergarten shortfall and statewide trends; members asked for more analysis of where students went and options to strengthen offerings (e.g., hybrid, online, expanded ALE). - Direction: staff to pursue cohort tracking, regional comparisons via the ESD, and outreach to understand family choices; maintain current spending controls. - Decision: none of the budget corrective actions (beyond existing spending controls) were decided at this meeting.

Speakers quoted in this article are listed below. Ending: board members acknowledged the need for a plan to address an estimated million‑dollar shortfall if enrollment trends persist and asked staff to return with analysis and options before major personnel changes.