Douglas Unified elects Breen as board president; he warns of deep budget shortfall

The Douglas Unified School District board elected Mister Breen as board president during its organizational meeting. The nomination was put forward by a board member and, after a roll-call vote, board members present voted to elect Breen to the post.

Breen spoke immediately after the vote to thank colleagues and to set priorities for his term, identifying classroom instruction and student and staff safety as top concerns. He framed the district’s most urgent challenge as financial, saying public schools are “in trouble” and that the district has been drawing on funds “that were never intended to be used in the maintenance operation of a district.”

Breen cited long-term enrollment decline as a driver of the budget pressure. He said the district once enrolled “almost 5,000 students” and operated 11 school buildings, and that attrition over the past eight to ten years has left the district with fewer students and the need to re-examine services and expenditures. He emphasized that personnel costs make up the major portion of the district budget and that administrators will need to bring forward proposals that the board may have to act on.

The board did not take immediate action on specific budget measures at the meeting. Breen said many of the forthcoming steps will be administrative but that items requiring board action will be brought to the board for consideration. He closed by asking board members to be available for special or emergency meetings as needed.

The election took place by roll call; the members named during the vote recorded “yes” responses, and the motion to elect Breen carried. The administration was acknowledged for ongoing work to identify and address the district’s fiscal challenges; no dates or dollar amounts were specified during the meeting.