including 406 classroom teachers, because of an additional $26 million
in county funding. However, district officials cautioned that layoffs
may still be needed, depending on the final state budget.
The $26 million will be applied to three items in Tier 4 of the
district's proposed budget, which included about $101 million in
proposed cuts. The items included teachers related to weighted student
staffing, class size and instructional support staff in schools. By
design, the fourth tier includes the reductions most likely to affect
student achievement. District leadership told the Mecklenburg Board of
County Commissioners during budget talks in June that any additional
funding would be applied to Tier 4, starting at the bottom of the tier
and working up.
"We will use the $26 million just as we told the county that we
would," said Chief Operating Officer Hugh Hattabaugh. "The $26 million
will mean we don't have to increase class sizes and we don't have to
change our weighted-student staffing formula. Together those two items
add up to $24 million – and we'll apply the remaining $2 million to
the next item in the tier, which is support staff in schools."
The remaining items in Tier 4 that the county money did not cover are
a reduction of 328 teacher assistants and a reduction in the number of
Bright Beginnings classes offered by CMS.
"We do not know whether we will have to make the additional reductions
in Tier 4 yet," Hattabaugh said. "It will depend on the state funding
and we won't know that until the state budget is final."
District officials expect to have final state numbers by the end of
June. The state budget appears likely to be resolved sooner than it
has been in earlier years, so CMS could have those numbers earlier
than usual.
The district's proposed budget included eliminating 1,687 positions.
The county funding has allowed the district to preserve 406 teacher
positions and some support staff. If funding allows the district to
keep its current number of Bright Beginnings pre-kindergarten classes
with associated staffing and the 328 teacher assistants scheduled for
reduction in Tier 4, that would bring the number of positions cut to
about 600, Hattabaugh said. Final numbers won't be available until the
state funding is certain, which will be later in the summer.
The district has decided to close the pre-kindergarten centers where
Bright Beginnings has been offered. If Bright Beginnings is not cut,
then the classes will move to other district schools, he said.
Teachers will not lose their jobs if that occurs, but other school
staff may.
"While we're relieved not to have to cut more teachers, we've still
had to cut hundreds of positions from the budget," Hattabaugh said.
"We have had a reduction in force for the past three years and that
has meant some very effective district employees have lost their jobs."
