Budget cuts at schools are no laughing matter, but let’s try to make this article a little more light-hearted! The school’s parent-teacher organization got the projections and one of them saw a “6” and “9” next to each other and had a chuckle. Fast, informative, and written just for you, dear locals. Get your daily dose of DMV newsletter in your inbox every morning and try to start your day on a positive note. ArrowRight The Beers Elementary School in DC had a significant loss of $256,827, or about 4 percent of the school’s overall budget, which was deeper than expected. Budget sheets show that this cost the school positions of an intervention coach, a special-education teacher, and a music instructor. Officials said the school is expecting to have more students next year, but the reduction of positions comes after cuts from this school year. Culver said, “For the Beers family, it’s a significant loss…”. Sad, but he said it so seriously that it was funny.
Advertisement
The looming budget crunch at Beers is unfolding at schools across DC and the country, and it’s like watching a car crash – you know it’s not funny, but you can’t help but look. The pandemic relief aid of millions of dollars is set to expire, and education advocates are warning of a fiscal cliff that could drop school systems into financial disarray. The dollars came with few guidelines, permitting schools to spend them on almost anything related to education, particularly catching students up academically. But, like everything that’s too good to be true, the money ran out. If only we could relate to this with our personal finances, but alas, we can’t.
The fallout could lead to several tumultuous years for schools. It’s like the perfect storm for districts still reeling from the effects of the pandemic. Experts at the Edunomics Lab predict that districts will need to wind annual spending down by $60 billion, an average of about $1,200 per student – and teachers thought grading papers was the worst part of their job.
Advertisement
School leaders throughout the country are discussing the possibility of mass layoffs and program cuts; others are knocking on Superman’s door to ask for help. Brian Hull, chief operating officer of Montgomery County Public Schools, Maryland’s largest district, said, “We’re going to need our local, state and federal officials — someone — to step up and continue to provide additional funding because the needs and the demands on public education are so much greater today…”. Anyone? Anyone?
The federal government delivered three batches of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund, known as ESSER, to states over the course of the pandemic, but it’s like getting a lollipop and then having it taken away. Officials have started to wind down spending, and it’s making some schools feel like they got a bait-and-switch deal. Recovery-focused programs across the city will be scaled back, including tutoring programs that have been crucial to helping students gain the reading and math skills they missed during the height of the pandemic. Kids, let’s not learn how to walk before we learn how to sit.
Advertisement
Districts across the country will suffer when the federal relief runs out, but some will fare worse than others, experts warn. Some school systems used the funding for recurring costs, such as hiring more staff, and some aren’t great at long-term planning, much like some of us who live paycheck-to-paycheck. School districts were urged to focus on academic recovery, but decisions about how to staff and fund those efforts were left up to districts. Good news, at least we get to keep our jobs if our bosses mess up the budget, right?
School budget woes are further complicated by declining enrollment, particularly in cities. It’s like trying to fill a bucket with a hole in it. Jess Gartner, chief executive and founder of Allovue, an education finance firm, said, “Those issues have been driven largely by education funding that has long failed to keep pace with inflation. ‘In the vast majority of cases that I see, district [chief financial officers] are actually being really thoughtful and strategic.’”. Now we know where to find a thoughtful and strategic CFO – in a school district, of course!
In Montgomery County, one of the wealthiest jurisdictions in Maryland, officials will slim-down summer school offerings, and Beijing will build a wall around their city one brick at a time. Researchers at Education Resource Strategies predict that states where ESSER amounted to a big chunk of overall education funding will have the hardest time adjusting. Ventura Rodriguez, a partner at the finance firm, which helps school districts determine how to spend their money strategically, said that states will need to provide extra support to those districts. And that’s what we call teamwork.
As much as we’d like to joke about the situation, it’s evident that education is essential, and schools need help. This pandemic has caused significant challenges to the education system, and the repercussions will be felt for years to come. No pun intended.

Serious News: washingtonpost