Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Budgeting topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Parents and administrators decry proposed staff cuts at Englewood Public School District
Summary
Parents, principals and the Inglewood Administrators Association warned that proposed budget cuts that eliminate assistant principals and other supervisory posts would strain school operations, jeopardize special education services and undermine safety and instruction.
A wave of public comment at the Englewood Board of Education meeting focused on proposed budget reductions that would eliminate assistant principals and several central-office supervisory positions, school and union leaders said.
"These reductions will not simply impact administrators. They will impact teachers, students, families, and our overall community," said Dr. Laura Matthew, president of the Inglewood Administrators Association, urging the board to reconsider cuts that would leave four schools with only a principal and no assistant principal. Dr. Matthew cited state certification rules for school supervision and warned that removing supervisory staff could hamper crisis response, oversight of special education and day-to-day operations.
Parents and school leaders described real-world consequences. "Vice principals are essential," said Abraham Olon, vice principal at Janice Dus Middle School. "If you don't put vice principals in every school, schools will be weaker." Parent Tiana Harvey said removing a classroom teacher and combining students with significantly different learning levels could "negatively impact his development," referring to her child at Mloud School.
Several parents raised special-education concerns and legal obligations. "My child's education depends on this board being transparent and accountable," said Eandre Bugs, a parent of a student with an IEP, who asked which special education positions will be reduced, how many students will be affected and how the district will continue to meet IDEA and Section 504 requirements.
Board members acknowledged the difficulty of the decisions. The chair told the meeting that accepting a 5.7% tax increase reduced the scale of layoffs the district would otherwise face and cited an increase in health-benefit costs and loss of state school-choice aid as drivers of the budget gap. "Numbers don't lie. 2 + 2 has to equal four," the chair said in explaining fiscal constraints.
Several board members said they regretted that the final consent agenda did not reflect earlier proposals to preserve staff. "This budget is being balanced on the back of staff cuts," Board Member Rachel Haber said, calling the outcome the result of an inflexible process rather than a strategy that preserved classroom services.
What happens next: the board approved most consent items but later clarified that two specific personnel motions (items 62 and 65) failed and will be revisited. Board members said they will continue to seek ways to restore positions before the next school year and asked administration to report back on options, including potential municipal partnerships for middle-school athletics and other cost-sharing measures.
The meeting is expected to include follow-up updates on special-education staffing, the plan to restore administrative positions if funds become available and an assessment of how sports and extracurriculars might be managed in partnership with the city.
