Edmonds School District Superintendent Rebecca Miner invites the community to participate in a Balancing Act simulation to explore options for offsetting the district’s estimated $2 million deficit.
Writing in the district’s newsletter, Miner said that the Edmonds School District — like many districts throughout the state — will need to reduce its operating budget to align expenses with revenues. Further, the district projects that it will need to reduce its budget by between $7 million and $10 million for the coming year.
“That amount may still increase or decrease based on a variety of factors,” Miner wrote. “The single most important factor will be the outcome of the current [Washington State] legislative session.”
The 2025-26 budget development web page provides users with a history of how the district reached its current financial crisis along with the simulator. Miner said the information obtained through the simulator will help the district understand the community’s priorities when deciding which services to reduce.
The simulator lists revenues and expenditures that cannot be adjusted and those that can be increased or cut. However, even if users maximize all revenues, they will still have a $1.9 million deficit and must make cuts to pull out of the red.
“While this simulation is not a vote, please know that all feedback and comments will be carefully reviewed and considered,” Miner wrote.
The Balancing Act simulation is open now until March 12.
My opinion is schools especially with the spending of the Edmonds district could certainly sustain and if the spending was more directed toward the basics just maybe even better outcomes. To say you have performed poorly related to our peers around the world would be a accurate statement. Also with the amount of money we spend in relation to our peers one would think we should preform near the top. Something ain’t working and I don’t see money as being the answer to the problem.
Jim,
Appreciate your thoughts and input here. The basics are being funded, but it’s the things like music and sports that are on the chopping block. Both are proven to increase school performance and graduation rates, so if you are looking at it from a return on investment model, keeping both of them make sense.
If you select to keep music and athletics, the gap is only $2400. I would personally write a check for that.
Our kids already have fewer music options that the surrounding districts, so why would we take away even more? If you lose 6th grade music programs, it effectively guts the middle and high school programs in future years. Kids are not going to start band as a new player in 7th grade – they’ve already decided on their activities by then.
Please, please save our elementary music programs!