Newberg SD 29J outlines $4.5 million cuts and a $1.20 levy option as enrollment drops

Superintendent Dave Parker told the Newberg SD 29J board that the district faces a structural enrollment gap and a projected $4.5 million budget shortfall that will require significant cuts unless residents approve a local-option levy.

Parker said the district’s graduating classes now average about 330 students while incoming kindergartens are nearer 250–280, a trajectory that will push declines through middle and high school and force staff and program reductions. “Without additional revenue, we’re going to have to make a cut of $4,500,000,” Parker said, citing a draft plan that would split roughly $2.7 million in K–12 staffing reductions and about $1.8 million in program cuts.

Why it matters: The district’s proposal aims to preserve neighborhood schools and reasonable class sizes while rebuilding a policy-directed reserve. Parker presented three scenarios that vary by the level of reserve building and restoration of furlough days; the administration’s working levy rate is $1.20 per $1,000 assessed value, which staff say would allow the district to avoid the deepest staffing reductions and restore instructional days.

Board members pressed administrators on how cuts would be implemented and the human impact. Parker described choices at the elementary level between allowing class sizes to rise (potentially into the low 30s) or hiring additional teachers, which would further strain fund balances if the levy fails. He said the administration has already eliminated roughly 76.75 FTE through prior reductions, cut building budgets about 20%, and is planning targeted program and personnel reductions.

Administrators described the alternatives considered earlier this year — boundary changes, creating magnets or closing buildings — and said the boundary committee concluded those changes alone would not solve the structural challenge. Parker emphasized outreach and accountability if the district pursues a levy, saying he plans public communications and oversight measures to show how additional funds would be spent.

Next steps: The budget committee will meet on scheduled dates this spring (administration proposed April 7 and May 5; the budget hearing remains tentatively set for May 26 or moved to June 9 depending on the local-option outcome). If the levy is placed on the ballot, the administration intends to build a public information campaign and present a formal budget to the board that assumes either passage or failure of the measure.

Sources and attribution: Superintendent Dave Parker presented the enrollment, cuts and levy scenarios during the board’s budget training and workshop; Nate Rodell, the district CFO, provided supporting budget structure and calendars. The board voted later in the meeting on an unrelated policy action. The district’s materials and the presentation packet were referenced during the discussion.

Ending: The board did not take a formal vote on the levy at the meeting; administrators said they will return to the board with a recommended levy measure, budget drafts showing proposed cuts, and a public outreach plan ahead of formal action this spring.