El Paso ISD budget review committee urges cost savings, board hears stipend proposals amid $22.9M projected deficit

Board President Intervale convened a budget workshop where members of El Paso Independent School District's Budget Review Committee (BRC) summarized their year‑long review and staff presented updated budget projections and proposed changes to stipends.

The BRC, which Martha Aguirre, the district chief financial officer, said included roughly 70 ongoing participants, reported top cost‑saving ideas — energy conservation, supplies and inventory controls, and reduced travel via virtual training — and revenue strategies focused on attendance improvement, truancy consequences and employee recognition. "We had different perspectives," said Erica Castano, a BRC facilitator for connecting languages. "We come from different backgrounds and coming together to come up with ideas to to help you with our budget."

Why it matters: Aguirre told trustees the district currently projects $506,000,000 in revenue for next year, $23,000,000 less than the current year, while proposed operating expenditures are $528,000,000, leaving a projected deficit of $22,900,000. The board will consider a final budget and compensation proposals at the June 3 workshop.

BRC composition and process: Jorge Saenz, director of special education, described the committee as broadly representative, including nurses, counselors, food service staff and administrators, and said members met monthly for about two hours to dig into expenditures and revenues. "We had a chance to really go into the budget," Saenz said. The group included campus staff and department representatives who said the BRC helped them learn the district's budget priorities and return to their sites as "ambassadors."

Budget snapshots and constraints: Aguirre emphasized that the figures staff presented reflect current law and that there were no legislative updates to incorporate. She said the district's debt service payment is anticipated at $53,800,000 and that the debt service and food‑and‑nutrition funds are balanced. Aguirre also noted a revision to the district's administrative cost ratio: staff project a 5.49 percent ratio when aligned with Texas Education Agency (TEA) reporting conventions, versus an earlier 6 percent projection. "We don't have any updates from a legislative session, so all the information that we're presenting today is based on current law," Aguirre said.

Proposed stipend and pay changes: Staff outlined several recommended stipend changes under consideration for the next school year. Highlights presented by Aguirre include: - A $1,000 stipend for teachers who earn National STEM certification. - A new $1,000 stipend for dyslexia specialists within special education. - Adjusted campus redesign stipends increased to a range of $7,000–$10,000 depending on model, with Canyon Hills remaining at $7,000 and ACE models at higher levels. - Increases proposed for UIL academic coordinator stipends at elementary, middle and high school levels, and additional stipends tied to an elementary fine arts academy at Crockett and an environmental sciences academy. - Removal of the supplemental instructional support stipend for the behavior position, which staff said is no longer needed under the updated campus staffing model. Staff said some stipend amounts (for example, the National STEM certification and UIL coordinator increases) were added to the presentation after materials posted last Friday and remain under development.

Other pay clarifications: Staff clarified miscellaneous pay items, including pay for athletic trainers for July work (trainers are on duty through June 30, and July work would be compensated) and that non‑degree substitutes must still meet a 30‑hour college coursework requirement.

BRC recommendations and next steps: BRC members urged continued transparency and recommended future committees drill into specific strategies — for example, interventions to improve attendance, which the BRC saw as a high‑value lever for both student outcomes and revenue. "Maybe next year's committee can focus on specific strategies the district can try to implement to improve attendance," Maribel Pineda, a CTC at Silva Health Magnet, said. Lisa Herrera, a nurse at Cielo Vista Elementary, said committee members gained financial awareness and leadership skills that they could carry back to their campuses.

Board process and timeline: Aguirre said the board will receive a more finalized document at the June 3 workshop, including the final budget snapshot, compensation and health‑care proposals and allocations tied to the district strategic blueprint. Trustee Nelley asked staff to schedule time between the swearing‑in of new trustees and the June 3 meeting for briefings, and multiple BRC members and trustees emphasized continuing the district's transparent, collaborative approach.

What the board did not do: No motions or formal budget adoptions were made at the workshop. Staff presented proposals and gathered input; formal action is scheduled for later meetings.

For follow up: Staff will return June 3 with finalized proposals; the board may act on the budget at future scheduled adoption hearings.