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East Lyme school officials outline 17.9 FTE reductions, paraeducator and bus cuts to meet budget
Summary
Board of Education representatives told the East Lyme Board of Finance the district eliminated about 17.9 full-time-equivalent positions and will cut one bus route and late high‑school runs; the district also cited a 92% substitute fill rate through Kelly Services and plans to refresh enrollment projections and study redistricting.
Board of Education representatives appearing before the East Lyme Board of Finance on July 8 said the district enacted about 17.9 full-time-equivalent reductions and other operational changes to close budget gaps driven by recent referendums.
"What you can see on the first slide is... it's 17.9 staff reductions," one presenter said while reviewing staffing slides. The presenters described a mix of actions that included eliminating 10 paraeducator positions for the 2026–27 school year (largely vacancies or one‑year positions), reducing one bus route and ending late high‑school bus runs, and other non‑staff cuts detailed on a slide of measures taken to meet targets.
District representatives defended the approach as relying primarily on attrition and unfilled vacancies rather than layoffs. "Nobody's losing their job," a presenter said when asked about the paraeducator eliminations; the presenters said several roles were not filled or were designated as one‑year positions because future budgets were uncertain.
On substitutes and risk transfer, presenters cited the private contractor Kelly Services: "Kelly does a much better job at getting subs than we were doing when we were doing it internally. Their fill rate is 92 percent," one presenter said, noting that the contract also shifts benefit‑compliance and unemployment‑claim risk and yields about $15,000 in net savings this year.
The presenters also reviewed enrollment trends and a projection study showing relatively flat enrollment; they said the district is commissioning a refreshed study this summer and will consider redistricting in future years if needed. They noted ongoing regional partnerships that generate tuition revenue and shared services (examples cited: pathway course tuition from neighboring districts, shared nursing supervision, and program affiliations such as Project Oceanology).
Board and finance members pressed for clarity on which reductions were vacancies versus eliminations and on how the district measures student‑learning impact; presenters said state data and an updated fall data release will allow the board to review outcomes.
District officials said they will continue to meet with the Board of Finance and make materials available for ongoing questions; no formal vote or board action on the district's staffing decisions was taken at the finance meeting.
