WS/FCS needs to cut additional $13M from budget to avoid deficit, bringing total cuts to $36M

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools officials say the district needs to cut another $13 million in order to have a balanced budget next year.

Officials say the district overspent on personnel in its budget last year due in part to inaccurate financial projections. The issue prompted a dip into fund balance, and roughly $23 million in cuts for next year’s budget. 

At a Board of Education meeting Tuesday night, Superintendent Tricia McManus said that further digging with the help of a consulting firm revealed the district will need to save another $13 million to avoid a deficit. 

In total, over $36 million needs to be cut from the budget. But McManus says the issue isn’t that the district is overstaffed or overpaying its workers. 

“When I go into schools every day, I don't see a bunch of extra people standing around, none," McManus said. "I see people working with kids. I see people running ragged. I see people doing whatever it takes.”

Part of the problem, she says, is that state allotments for positions have gone down over the years due to a declining student population. But having fewer kids doesn’t mean the district needs fewer resources.  

The number of students who have special needs, are economically disadvantaged, or require multilingual services has gone up by thousands. As a result, the district is spending $158 million on salaries that aren't covered by the state allotments. But that may have to change.

“We have to make the decisions about what we need to eliminate, and I'm not saying it needs to be positions," McManus said. "It needs to be $13 million of something.”

More than 50 educators came out to the meeting, urging board members to advocate for more funding from local and state governments, rather than making additional cuts. Fifth-grade teacher Derek Setser was one of them. 

“Staff burnout is already unsustainable," Setser said. "Asking more from fewer people isn't a solution, it's a setup for failure.”

Forsyth County Association of Educators President Jenny Easter made similar comments. 

"Our schools are not bloated with staff. They are exhausted," Easter said. "If the state of North Carolina was actually funding what students and staff deserve, if they were funding Leandro like the court ordered, we would not be in this mess, and we would not be staring down these impossible choices."

Ultimately, the school board voted 7-2 to approve a budget request of about $180 million aligned with the county commissioners’ proposal — nothing extra. The district aims to come up with a savings plan in the next two weeks.

The morning after the meeting, the district announced it had appointed an interim chief financial officer, after Thomas Kranz left the role on May 9. 

Freida Lashmit has worked in the district’s finance department for more than 30 years, and served as interim CFO once before in 2019.

In addition to appointing Lashmit, the district has partnered with HIL Consultants to help get their finances in order.

Amy Diaz covers education for WFDD in partnership with Report For America. You can follow her on Twitter at @amydiaze.