Little Rock School District approves budget proposal, making $15 million in cuts
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – More information is coming out about Little Rock School District’s proposed budget cuts which could leave hundreds of teachers without a job this fall.
The district was tasked with cutting $15 million for the 2024-2025 school year to make up for money lost from a declining enrollment.
“I got a lot left in me and I want to teach,” Ron Calcagni, who works in the Pulaski Heights Middle School Athletics Department, said.
Little Rock School District considering $15 million budget reduction plan
Calcagni was one of several teachers who came to speak at the recent school board meeting. He like many others, received a notice that his contract would not be renewed for the next school year.
“I didn’t do anything wrong to not be hired back at my job, I take pride in that,” Calcagni said.
The Little Rock School District approved its final budget proposal last week, broken down into five different categories.
At the top of the list is the consolidation of Little Rock West SIO and Hall. By combining these two schools, the district will be able to cut down on the number of school administration positions, teachers, paraprofessionals and custodial staff.
The district states this will save them $2,579,500 in category one.
LRSD launches new Spanish-language services for district students, families
The second category makes cuts at the district office, impacting 28 positions with 17 of those being eliminated and the other 11 repurposed elsewhere.
According to the district, category two of the budget plan has a savings of $2,008,063.
Category three of the plan focuses on cuts from the school leadership and school leadership support positions. This includes the reduction of principal positions, AP teachers, curriculum specialists, and ITL’s or instructional lead teachers.
District officials said 23 positions were eliminated saving the district $2,374,138.12.
The largest category is teacher cuts. The district said 344 teacher contracts have not been renewed for the upcoming school year.
In addition, the district has eliminated 42 certified teacher vacancies and 16 classified position vacancies. In total, the district states this saves them $4,230,000.
Little Rock School District’s 2024 Student Legislative Summit held at Capitol
The last category saves money by changing the middle school class schedule, moving from a 4 X 4 A/B block scheduling to a 6-period hybrid A/B schedule.
Additional ELA and Science teachers were added to middle school schedules while social studies, Pem and other elective teacher positions were cut. According to officials, this saves the district $1,740,000.
Throughout this plan, the district said they can save nearly $16 million, meeting their required need.
Some board members said they were concerned about the number of district office positions that were being cut, while others said the changes are best to fit the enrollment needs.
“If we could take a nice significant larger chunk out of top administration then that would be better instead of taking away from direct student services,” LRSD Board Member Vikki Hatter said.
LRSD moves all high school graduations to Barton Coliseum due to potential severe weather
The board voted to approve the proposal in full.
Teachers who wish to appeal their non-renewal notice have until June 30 to do so.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KARK.
