Tumwater board receives budget update showing negative January cash, enrollment decline and public pushback on cuts

The Tumwater School District presented a midwinter budget update on Feb. 27 showing the general fund in a negative cash position in January and an average‑year enrollment below budget. Staff and community commenters urged the board to consider the local effects of proposed cuts on classrooms, student safety and extracurricular programs.

Why it matters: The district’s operating budget supports day‑to‑day instruction and staff pay. Finance staff told the board the general fund was approximately $175,000 negative in January; the district planned a cash transfer from capital projects to remain cash‑positive in the near term. District leaders also reported the district’s average full‑time equivalent (FTE) enrollment was 64 students below budgeted projections.

Nikira (Kira) Acker, director of finance and financial services, reviewed the January financials. “We are about 175,000 negative in January,” she said in the meeting, and noted the district planned to complete a cash transfer from capital projects to address the shortfall.

Acker reviewed multiple fund balances and restrictions: the capital projects fund balance reported about $3.6 million, the debt service balance about $2.5 million, the ASB (Associated Student Body) fund near $1.94 million, and the transportation vehicle fund at approximately $1.3 million. She emphasized that vehicle fund dollars are restricted to bus purchases and related transportation expenditures.

Enrollment and payroll figures were also discussed. The district’s February enrollment report showed K‑12 enrollment down 40 students from the prior month and an average‑year FTE down by 64 from the adopted budget projection, Kira said. Salary and benefits remain the district’s largest cost, with recent monthly salary and benefit expenditures cited in meeting materials.

Public comment focused on the consequences of proposed staffing and program reductions. Teachers and students described classroom disruption and safety issues that they said would worsen under proposed restructuring: Heather Dover, a second‑grade teacher at Michael T. Simmons Elementary, described frequent disruptive and dangerous behaviors in K–2 classrooms and questioned the rationale for adding a high‑salary finance position during a budget crisis. “Why was a position that is paid at a salary of $208,000 a year hired? This salary is equivalent to nearly 3 and a half provisional teachers,” Dover said.

Students and families urged retention of targeted positions and programs. Jolie Ramsey, a parent, and former students spoke in support of keeping the director of percussion position, describing its role in logistics, mentorship and continuity for music programs across the district. Student speakers and FFA leadership urged clearer communication from the board and more transparent outreach around budget impacts on programs that support graduation and student well‑being.

Assistant Superintendent Ben Rerick outlined the budget timeline leading to adoption and emphasized public engagement: district staff plan multiple work sessions in March and April, and two public hearings (one in June and one in August) before the budget is adopted. Rerick explained the district already advanced several staffing reductions earlier in the year because of immediate cash pressures and that further work sessions will refine revenue and expenditure estimates as the state legislative session concludes.

Board members and staff said the district will continue to brief the public on budget development, with additional opportunities for community input and for impacted staff and families to plan and respond.