More than 550 Austin ISD employees could lose their jobs amid budget deficit

AUSTIN, Texas - Austin ISD is sharing more about its plan to close a $181 million budget deficit. Under the current proposal, hundreds of positions will be impacted.

Now, we are learning more about what that process will look like and how students, staff and families could feel the effects.

While the district says the goal is to keep as many employees as possible, more than 550 positions could be impacted.

What they're saying:

"When you see it all together, you see how big this is impacting the school district, and what a devastation it is for the school district," said Ken Zarifis, President, Education Austin.

Austin ISD Superintendent Matias Segura says the district has been caught between rising costs and stagnant state funding.

"You can look at any one of these things as a lack of support for kids, and that's not what we should be doing. We should be finding ways to support children, not take away from them," said Segura.

Since adopting its current budget, property values have dropped more than expected, enrollment has declined and operating costs have continued to rise.

Last fall, the district made the tough choice to close 11 schools in an effort to address the shortfall. Under the district's recommended package of cuts, 558 current positions would be impacted.

Segura says with more than 88% of its budget invested in employees, staffing changes are unavoidable.

The district says it will try to limit the impact by freezing vacant positions and moving employees into open roles.

Every affected employee who holds a teaching certificate is guaranteed an alternative placement.

"It's not a district-wide loss of employment. It's a respectful process that says, if you've got a contract, we will respect that contract and be here," said Zarafis.

For non-certified staff, like instructional AIDS and other campus staff, the district says it will try to find qualifying positions, but some employees could ultimately lose their jobs.

Students and families could also notice changes. Grades 2–5 will see modest class size increases, and some schools could share librarians or assistant principals.

"If you're split between two campuses, it's difficult to maintain either of the programs as fully as you would if you were just at one campus. And so, there is a challenge if you are split between campuses. So, nothing is ideal," said Zarafis.

Zarafis says another possible impact is bus routes.

"Right now, you can if you're within a quarter mile of your school or your elementary school or any school, you get up, you get a bus, they will come pick you up, take you there. Now, if they're cutting it, they're going to  what's recommended by the state is a two-mile radius. We're going to have all kinds of parents that are upset that are going to lose that bus to take their kids to school," said Zarafis.

To help close the remaining gap, the district is selling or monetizing four properties, cutting $17 million from administrative departments, and saving money through attrition and staff reassignments.

The superintendent is presenting the package of cuts to the board of trustees tomorrow night.

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