In a statement to the community delivered Friday afternoon, Montgomery County Board of Education (BOE) President Karla Silvestre and Interim Superintendent Dr. Monique Felder issued a statement about the budget that will be adopted June 11.
Addressing reports of increased class size and teacher layoffs, the school officials listed some of the many items they could cut due to a $30 million gap in what the Montgomery County council allocated and what the BOE requested in funding for Fiscal Year 2025.
Items on the chopping block include:
- Reduction in central office employees
- Reduction of middle and high school staff development teacher allocations from full time to reduced hours
- Increase in class size guidelines by one student. This will potentially result in a reduction of between 100 and 150 positions. Some of these cuts will be handled through reductions, retirements and other expected vacancies.
- Elimination of the Montgomery Virtual Academy
- Delay in Pre-Kindergarten expansion by postponing the creation of additional full-day Pre-K classrooms
- Reduction in additional CollegeTracks counseling services at some high schools
- Preservation of therapeutic mental health support by realigning funds to provide these allowable services through a different grant
- Reductions in contractual services affecting a number of contracts
- Reduction of musical instrument repair services provided for schools impacted by poverty.
If class size is increased, fewer staff may be needed, Silvestre and Felder wrote in the community message. The reduction would impact all employee groups and would be implemented in accordance with procedures outlined in the negotiated agreements with the employee associations, according to the community message.
Silvestre and Felder also wrote, “We understand the gravity of these potential decisions and the challenges they present. We want to emphasize that these considerations are not a reflection of the dedication or the quality of work of our staff.”
They concluded their message by stating, “Even in the midst of these challenging circumstances, our commitment to providing the best possible education for each and every MCPS student remains steadfast.”
