Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Education Budget Enrollment topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
ABC board president tells council district faces enrollment and budget shortfalls after summer‑school attendance drop
Summary
ABC board president Ernie Nishi told the Hawaiian Gardens council that summer‑school enrollment fell well below registration, the district has lost thousands of students since before the pandemic and faces multi‑million‑dollar funding and legal‑cost challenges that will affect next year’s budget.
During the public‑comment period on Aug. 13, Ernie Nishi, identifying himself as president of the ABC board, briefed the Hawaiian Gardens City Council on the local school district’s enrollment and budget challenges and requested continued partnership with the city.
Nishi said elementary summer school had 380 students registered but only about 175 actually attended. He said middle‑ and high‑school summer programs also experienced low attendance — “about a third of the kids, we had 400 enrolled and about a 109 that did not just show up,” he said — and that district staff had attempted outreach to absent students and families.
He told the council that the district’s enrollment has declined from “over 20,000 students” before the pandemic to about 17,500 last year, and that the cumulative loss in student‑based revenue equates to “roughly $35,000,000” since pre‑pandemic levels. He said the district lost about 500 students in the prior year alone, which he estimated corresponded to a roughly $7,000,000 revenue impact.
Nishi said Title I and migrant education funding had at times been held by the federal government but that the district continued programs in expectation of future payments; he said the district was hopeful the funds would be restored but cautioned that “hope is not a very good strategy” given federal uncertainty. He also called out district liability associated with AB 218, saying those costs were “about $6,000,000” and noting the district has no insurance to cover those costs.
Nishi said the district’s reserves are below the three‑year benchmark used by county/state guidance and that, as a result, it has made cuts to travel, administration and staffing; he urged further coordination with the city on facilities and enrollment planning and said the district would hold a study session on Sept. 2 to discuss facilities and efficiencies.
His remarks were heard during the public‑comment period; no council action was taken on the district’s report during the meeting. Council members acknowledged the update and thanked him for the briefing.
