The Marion County School Board spent much of its May 22 work session reviewing a proposed Central Office Staffing Plan for 2025-26 after staff reported that the plan shows a $99 million all-funds cost (about $84 million from the general fund) and a net headcount reduction of 18 positions but an increase of roughly $8.2 million in general-fund expense compared with last year's approved budget.

Board members pressed finance leaders and the interim superintendent for reconciliations of conflicting figures, requested specifics on which positions are frozen or funded through grants, and asked for an itemized cost-per-position breakdown ahead of further decisions.

Why it matters: The staffing plan affects recurring personnel costs across the district. Board members said they need clear, auditable numbers to decide whether to prioritize central-office cuts, school-based reductions or a mix of both; several members stressed the board must not rely solely on short-term fund balance to cover recurring costs.

Key points from the session

- Staff presentation: District staff said the proposed central-office staffing plan would cost about $99 million in all funds, with $84 million from the general fund — an $8.2 million increase over the adopted general-fund staffing budget for 2024-25. The plan showed an overall net decrease of 18 administrative positions but additional proposed hires and realignments in some departments.

- Board confusion and requests for reconciliation: Several board members questioned the arithmetic. Board member James asked, “So how are we less 18 positions and more $9,000,000? Because I think that's the math I just heard.” (transcript). Finance staff explained that the comparison point is the prior year's adopted budget, and that positions added or removed during the year (after adoption) can make the year-to-year comparison look discrepant. Staff also said they had unfunded multiple positions during budget balancing and that some positions carried by departments were added back later in the year.

- Frozen positions and grant-funded roles: Staff said some positions are frozen or are funded by federal grants and therefore do not affect the general-fund balance in the same way. Board members asked for a clear list separating (a) general-fund recurring positions, (b) grant-funded positions, and (c) currently frozen/unfunded vacancies. One board member requested the cost attached to each position by department, and for clarity on which roles are covered by recurring funds versus one-time or grant sources.

- Timeline and process: Board members asked staff to prepare a round-two staffing plan and to return with a more detailed proposal. Several board members recommended that staff produce a department-by-department, facility-by-facility list showing salary-and-benefit totals so the board can weigh options before opening school-based staffing plans.

Board directions and next steps

Staff accepted multiple information requests and agreed to provide: an itemized list of positions with costs, a list of frozen/unfunded positions, separation of general-fund and grant-funded roles, and identification of positions placed on adjusted or frozen pay scales. The board scheduled follow-up discussion at the June 5 work session and asked staff to identify additional reductions that could be implemented while minimizing classroom impacts.

Ending: Finance staff noted the numbers will continue to move as the district finalizes revenue estimates and fund balance. The board directed staff to return with the requested reconciliations and position-level cost detail for follow-up deliberations.