Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools officials say more position cuts are on the horizon amid declining enrollment and state funding.
At a budget workshop on Tuesday, Superintendent Don Phipps said enrollment declined by 1,551 students this year compared to last.
He called it a staggering number and said he’d like to work on marketing to get those students back in the future. But for now, because state funding is tied to enrollment, the district is bracing for a major loss.
“What we lose from the state is going to be about $11 million," Phipps said. "But that's not $11 million in terms of $11 million that would have been put in our account. That includes the equivalent in positions and things like that.”
Phipps estimates 80 positions need to be eliminated, but emphasized that these would likely already be vacant. He doesn’t foresee anyone losing employment.
This comes less than a year after hundreds of positions were cut amid a major financial crisis. Educators have been advocating for those jobs, many in the exceptional children department, to be restored. Phipps says it may be possible to bring back some — but definitely not all.
He plans to bring a full budget recommendation to the board on April 14.
In addition to discussing the budget, the school board spoke to representatives from the lobbying firm Elevation Strategies. The district is considering seeking grant or other private funding to hire a lobbyist to advocate for the school system's needs at the state level.