Public Radio for the Piedmont and High Country
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

More WS/FCS cuts to come without financial help, officials say

Rep. Donny Lambeth speaks to Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools officials about the district's deficit
Amy Diaz
/
WFDD
Rep. Donny Lambeth spoke with Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools officials about the district's deficit at a meeting on Sept. 22, 2025.

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools could be facing more staffing cuts.

Officials told local legislators at a meeting on Monday that it could be the only way to repay its debt without financial assistance.

The district’s deficit is currently about $37 million. A portion of that is state debt that will begin accruing interest in October.

Interim Superintendent Catty Moore told legislators that without a loan or appropriation from the General Assembly, more cuts will be needed.

“In order to make space in a budget for about $300,000 a month in payments, we’re going to need to reduce by another 40 to 50 positions,” she said.

That’s on top of the more than 500 positions already cut this year.

Rep. Donny Lambeth said that while he believed the local delegation would support legislation to help the district, getting the rest of the House and Senate on board would be a challenge.

He urged district leaders to talk to the General Assembly’s Education Oversight Committee to begin rallying support.

Amy Diaz began covering education in North Carolina’s Piedmont region and High Country for WFDD in partnership with Report For America in 2022. Before entering the world of public radio, she worked as a local government reporter in Flint, Mich. where she was named the 2021 Rookie Writer of the Year by the Michigan Press Association. Diaz is originally from Florida, where she interned at the Sarasota Herald-Tribune and freelanced for the Tampa Bay Times. She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of South Florida, but truly got her start in the field in elementary school writing scripts for the morning news. You can follow her on Twitter at @amydiaze.

Support quality journalism, like the story above,
with your gift right now.

Donate