School-board member warns of 5,516-student drop and bargaining impasse

Erica Whitfield, a school-board member (District 4), gave the council a broad update on district performance and finances, saying the system saw a much larger-than-expected enrollment decline this year. "We anticipated being down about 400 students... what we ended up being down was 5,516 students," Whitfield said, and she said the district and school leaders are investigating causes including relocation and private-school voucher use.

Whitfield described a teacher-negotiations impasse reached last week and outlined the district's current compensation offer: a 3% raise made up of 1.5% recurring and 1.5% bonus. She said state funding increases were small (about 0.6% this past year) and urged public advocacy: "Please call your representatives," she said, noting that property-tax and funding proposals at the state level could further affect school budgets. Whitfield said most of the district budget goes to salaries and that the district is exploring partnerships to expand early-literacy supports and vocational choice programs. "We have 335 choice programs throughout our school system," she added, citing programs aimed at connecting students to employers and trades training.

Council members asked about volunteer tutoring, trade-school pathways and how the district measures proficiency; Whitfield pointed to Title I funding, nonprofit partners and recent investments in facility security and camera upgrades. She thanked the council and residents for community partnerships and encouraged volunteers to support neighborhood schools.