Mesa Public Schools unveils regional learning communities, reduces district office staff to address enrollment-funded deficit

Mesa Unified District Superintendent Dr. Matthew Straum said Thursday evening the district is reorganizing central office supervision into regional learning communities and has already had six executive director appointments approved by the school board as part of a plan aimed at closing an enrollment-driven budget gap.

Straum said the reorganization will reduce the number of assistant superintendents from 11 to six and decrease directors from 27 to 22, eliminating about 40 full-time equivalent district-level positions. "This is saving about $3,600,000 across 40 FTE," he told a packed community forum, and added the change is intended "to protect as many school based assets as we possibly can."

The reorganized structure groups schools into executive learning communities overseen by the new executive directors so supervisors can be more present and support student learning, Straum said. He emphasized the change is a supervision restructure, not a redrawing of school attendance boundaries: "This is a supervision structure," Straum said. "We're not attempting to redraw boundaries so everything fits perfectly."

Why it matters: Mesa, like many districts, is funded on a per-student basis and Straum said lower kindergarten enrollment and other demographic shifts have produced recurring deficits. He told the forum the district is…