Poway Unified outlines $10 million in budget solutions, recommends ending home-education program

On Feb. 12 the Poway Unified School Board held a special budget workshop where district presenter Mr. Dell outlined a revised budget outlook driven by a lower state cost-of-living adjustment and a set of proposed reductions and fund shifts.

The presenter said the governor’s proposed LCFF COLA of 2.41% is lower than earlier estimates and “it will be $2,600,000 less if that 2.41% COLA holds,” reducing the district’s expected new dollars for 2026–27. He summarized a package of roughly $10,000,000 in budget solutions — about half ongoing and half one-time — intended to stabilize reserves and produce a technically balanced budget under the current assumptions.

Why it matters: Poway Unified’s per-student revenue is driven by average daily attendance and unduplicated pupil counts; a sustained drop in births and elementary enrollment means fewer students and less LCFF revenue in future years. The board’s choices this spring will shape staffing and program availability for 2026–27 and beyond.

Key details: The staff presentation reviewed several program evaluations and proposed specific strategies to reduce or reallocate costs. Major elements included managing staffing through natural attrition (estimated savings of about $2,700,000), eliminating low-enrollment/high-cost programs (the Poway Home Education program — roughly 12–14 students and 1.75 FTE — was recommended for discontinuation, with notice to families), aligning expanded-learning staffing to student-contact hours (about $500,000 in savings), and additional district-office efficiencies (approximately $700,000). Presenter also described shifting some positions to adult-education and Proposition 28 funds and preserving services by using one-time discretionary block-grant carryover; staff estimated $4,800,000 in one-time savings by not moving current block-grant-funded positions into the unrestricted general fund next year.

Presenter also noted potential upside in state proposals: a proposed AB 602 special education equalization could add roughly $1,600,000 ongoing if enacted, but the district will not rely on uncertain block-grant amounts until state action is final.

Board response and next steps: Board members praised staff work on the budget and said the presentation answered many questions. Chair noted appreciation for the team and the earlier turn toward a balanced outlook. Staff said the district will set targets in February, wait for the governor’s May revision to finalize assumptions, and bring the proposed budget forward for two readings before adoption in June. Clerk Dougherty said there was no report out of closed session. "There is no report out of closed session," he said.

The board adjourned the special meeting at about 6:36 p.m.

(Reporting note: quotes and figures are drawn from the district presentation during the Feb. 12 special workshop; numbers such as projected savings are staff estimates and were presented as subject to change with the May revision and final statutory COLA.)