The Adams 12 district, Colorado’s fifth largest, plans to cut its 2010-11 budget by $24 million, about 7.4 percent, officials announced this week.
The size of the cut is about equal to the amount of state aid that the district is expected to lose next year. Under the plan, 188 positions will be cut. The district has about 5,000 employees, including about 2,000 teachers.
Superintendent Chris Gdowski said central administration will receive twice as large a percentage cut as schools but that the changes will mean reduction of campus supervisors, changes in middle school sports, new fees and reduction of support personnel such as counselors, social workers, speech language pathologists and library media specialists.
The district expects that elementary and middle school class sizes will remain about the same but that high school classes may grow slightly.
Before announcing the cuts, the district conducted a community and staff survey, which drew more than 6,000 respondents, and held five focus groups.
Under current plans for state budget cuts, Adams 12 is projected to have $260.7 million in total program funding in 2010-11, down $25 million from what the district could have expected to receive under the full terms of Amendment 23.
Total program funding is the amount a district receives from local and state support for basic instructional services and administration. It does not include funds that districts use for such things as debt payments.
The proposed Adams 12 cuts are in the same percentage range that most other Colorado districts are expecting.
The exact amount of cuts may change depending on upcoming state revenue forecasts, due to be released Friday, and final legislative action on next year’s state budget. District budget situations also will be affected by local circumstances, such as salary negotiations. Adams 12 is in talks with two employee unions.
Adams 12 serves more than 42,000 students in Broomfield, Federal Heights, Northglenn, Thornton and Westminster.