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Fridley superintendent warns of $960,000 compensatory-aid cut and outlines potential staffing reductions
Summary
Superintendent Dr. Brenda Lewis told the board the district faces a $960,000 reduction in compensatory-education funding after a state change to direct certification counting; she said the district is preparing staffing reductions but will not cut student-safety positions.
Fridley Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Brenda Lewis on May 19 described a significant budget challenge tied to recent changes in Minnesota’s compensatory-education funding and outlined options the district is considering to address the shortfall.
"We have $960,000 reduction in our compensatory aid dollars from this school year to next school year," Dr. Lewis told the board, saying the change resulted from the state counting only "direct certification" and eliminating form-based counts that previously benefitted some districts. She added that her initial staffing-reduction model targeted $2.2 million but that the district is still refining plans and said she would present specific staffing changes at a later date.
Lewis framed the funding change as disproportionately affecting districts with higher rates of poverty and students of color and said Fridley has been actively lobbying elected officials for corrective action. She said the district will "continue working with" state partners and that shortfalls will force difficult choices: "I am proposing different staffing reductions," Lewis said, while stressing that positions tied to student safety — counselors, nurses and social workers — "we are not reducing."
Lewis also described operational steps already taken to manage costs, including reviewing vendor contracts, correcting missed solar-panel revenue collection, terminating unsatisfactory CISO contracts for HR and finance and examining transportation contracting. She said that if the district had kept two extra instructional days it would have incurred roughly $250,000 in unbudgeted teacher pay for those days.
The board did not take immediate action on specific layoffs at the meeting; Lewis said she will return with more detailed staffing recommendations and that the district will continue advocacy at the state level for funding adjustments or hold-harmless provisions.
What’s next: Administration plans to present proposed staffing reductions and budget adjustments at a future meeting and will continue outreach to state officials about compensatory-education funding.
