Lake Oswego legal budget committee hears $10 million gap; district to cut 64 positions and raise secondary class sizes

Lake Oswego School District officials told the district’s Legal Budget Committee on April 23 that a projected shortfall in state funding and rising costs will require more than $10 million in reductions for the 2025–26 budget year, including 64 district- and site-level position eliminations and cuts to classroom staffing.

The district’s budget officer, Stuart Kessler, said the financial model prepared in December indicated a “very significant gap” if the district maintained current service levels, and that the district has already identified more than $10,000,000 in reductions to close it. “We’ve already identified cuts of of over $10,000,000 for for next year,” Kessler said.

Why it matters: the reductions affect classroom instruction, student support services and central office positions as the district prepares the proposed budget it will present to the committee May 7. The committee’s work, if finalized, will move to the full school board in June for adoption.

Details of reductions and classroom impacts Dr. Anthony (Tony) Shealy, superintendent, described the staffing reductions the district proposes to align spending with available revenue. “We have made a reduction of 64 positions across district and site levels,” Shealy said. Those district- and site-level cuts include administrators, administrative assistants, facilities staff, librarians, specialists, wellness professionals and academic support staff.

At the school level the district proposes to reduce seven elementary classroom teachers. Shealy said those cuts were achieved by reducing PE…