Next Board of Education budget study session: Thursday, Oct. 24
The Folsom Cordova Board of Education will hold its next public study session regarding the District’s budget challenges 4 - 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 24 in the Education Services Center Board Room, 1965 Birkmont Drive in Rancho Cordova.
Study sessions are public meetings that allow Board members the opportunity to dialogue about a single topic in more depth than they typically can during a routine business meeting. Thursday’s study session will precede the Board’s regularly scheduled meeting, which begins at 6 p.m. Watch live: Board meetings are also streamed live to our Folsom Cordova Youtube channel.
School districts across the state are experiencing fiscal challenges due to rising employee and operating costs that are outpacing revenues. This will be the fifth study session the Board has conducted in the last year to explore ideas for solutions to Folsom Cordova’s budget shortfall.
In the 2020-21 school year, the District projects an estimated $3.5 million budget shortfall, and an additional $5.5 million the following year.
As part of the first phase of budget reductions this year, the District has taken several actions, including reducing travel and conference expenses, saving money through early retirements, eliminating vacant teaching positions that did not have class rosters, declining to backfill some clerical positions, and eliminating some administration positions by collapsing vacant positions.
In recent weeks, the District has been working collaboratively with its employee unions, including the Folsom Cordova Education Association and the California School Employees Association, to explore long-term budget reductions designed to minimize potential staff reductions and reduce impacts to student learning. At its Thursday study session, Board of Education members will receive an overview of feedback and ideas received to date from employees and students.
-Daniel Thigpen, Director of Communication & Community Engagement, dthigpen@fcusd.org