Cuts are on the way at Youngstown City School District, with 20 positions on the chopping block as the district contends with an impending budget deficit.
The board of education approved the decision Tuesday not to renew 20 non-teaching positions The cuts are part of about $3.5 to $4 million in budget reductions the district hopes to make by the end of the next school year, it said in a statement Tuesday.
"Over the course of the remainder of this year, the district will notify certain individuals in either administrative or support positions whose contracts are expiring, and will not be renewed," the board and superintendent said in the joint statement. "It's important to note that this decision has been made with utmost fairness and consideration for all parties involved. Others in similar roles, whose contracts are not expiring, will have contracts suspended."
Meanwhile, the district is reviewing all vendor contracts and is letting some of them expire to save money.
That's a good idea, said Jim Courim, president of the Youngstown Education Association. He said the union's hope is the district won't cut positions that have direct impact on classrooms.
"I think part of it is inflation, I think part of it is just the cost to educate a child today is much more than it was five to 10 years ago," Courim explained, when asked about why the district is cutting now.
The financial forecast for the district - as of November 2023 - shows the district with a deficits of about $4 million this school year, with its cash reserve running out completely by the end of the 2026-2027 school year.
Youngstown is the latest district in the region to announce cuts to contend with an impending budget deficit, joining Cleveland Metropolitan School District and Akron Public Schools, among others. The end of pandemic relief funding has meant school districts are facing tough decisions and comes at a time when some districts haven't gotten voters to approve new money operating levies in years.
