Evergreen Public Schools faces recommended $19M budget cut

CLARK COUNTY, Wash. (KPTV) - About 140 full-time positions could be cut from the Evergreen Public Schools as it faces a recommended $19 million budget cut.

The jobs potentially on the line include everything from teachers at elementary schools up to high schools, athletic directors, librarians, family resource coordinators, and councilors.

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It’s not known exactly how many employees the school district will be losing their jobs, but it is known that district is recommending to cut the equivalent of 140 full-time positions.

The district says it needs to cut $19 million from its budget for the 2023-24 school year. The biggest factor for these cuts is a decline in school enrollment.

The district saw more than 13% decline in recent years and about 8% fewer students are enrolled now compared to before the pandemic. Leaders say fewer students means less state funding. Support from the federal government is also soon expiring which will have big impacts.

The district decided to share this news with staff and families before a upcoming board meeting so they were prepared.

“These are folks that work in our buildings - family, friend, colleagues,” said Evergreen School District Superintendent John Boyd. “We know 90% of all money we spend here goes towards staffing, and we’re making $19 million reduction. It does impact people, those are our real friends and we don’t take that lightly.”

School leaders say they made it a priority to get input from the community through an interactive survey. It allowed students, staff and families to anonymously share their budget priorities.

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The district says the positions they recommend cutting doesn’t necessarily mean that employee tied to that position will be laid off, they could always transition to other open positions.

The school board will address possible cuts publicly next week at a meeting on Tuesday, March 14.

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