Granite Falls board approves staff reductions as enrollment and revenue fall; audit finds no exit items

Summary

The Granite Falls School District approved personnel reductions after forecasting a drop of 90–100 students and nearly $1 million in lost enrollment-based revenue. The district received a clean exit report from the state auditor but directors warned the district’s cash-on-hand is far below best practices.

A majority of the Granite Falls School District Board approved staff reductions after district leaders told the board the district expects a drop of 90 to 100 students next school year and “nearly $1,000,000 less in enrollment-based revenue.”

The district’s superintendent, Dana Keesland, told the board the drop in enrollment is driven by smaller kindergarten cohorts following the pandemic, the sunsetting of an agreement with Lake Stevens School District that previously placed about 70 students at Crossroads High School, and a continued moratorium on new housing construction in Granite Falls. “This represents nearly 1,000,000 less in enrollment based revenue for the coming year,” Keesland said during her report.

Why it matters: enrollment drives staffing and general-fund revenue for the district. Board members and staff said they tried to limit the number of layoffs while balancing contract obligations tied to current staffing…

Granite Falls board approves staff reductions as enrollment and revenue fall; audit finds no exit items

Summary

Subscribe to keep reading