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New York City principals received surprising news this weekend: The city will not claw back money midyear from schools that enrolled fewer students than projected, the principals union told its members Sunday.
City officials did not say how much this will cost or where the money is expected to come from, but it’s likely to be a big chunk of change. In some ways, Mayor Eric Adams’ parting gift to schools could become a headache for the next mayor, who will have to confront the costly but popular initiative.
In the complicated world of school budgeting, schools typically get their funding in the summer based on Education Department projections of how many students are expected to show up in September. A school’s funding is then adjusted in the middle of the academic year after their enrollment is finalized.
There often can be a mismatch between a school’s projected roster and its actual enrollment, with some schools having fewer kids than anticipated or vice versa.
Education Department officials did not immediately say how many schools had fewer students than expected. Last year, enrollment was lower than projected at about half of the city’s 1,600 schools and higher than anticipated at the other half.
Before the pandemic, schools typically had to give money back to the city during the middle of the school year if they enrolled fewer students than projected. (Those that enrolled more students would get extra funds midyear.)
The policy to keep school budgets afloat despite enrollment, known as being “held harmless,” was initially enacted during the pandemic when many schools saw their rosters dwindle but had mounting needs to support students academically and emotionally.
The city halted the policy in the 2023-24 school year only to bring it back last year.
Last school year, the decision not to claw back school budgets midyear meant schools hung onto $157 million they would have otherwise had to give back. City officials committed a separate $126 million in June to ensure that no schools started out this school year with less funding than they had at the start of last school year.
Enrollment citywide has been on the decline for a decade, but went into freefall during the pandemic, dropping by nearly 100,000 students. The numbers leveled off over the past two school years thanks in large part to an influx of tens of thousands of migrant students. But immigration into the country and city has ground to a halt under President Donald Trump’s enforcement efforts.
Requiring schools to return money midyear has sometimes created complications at schools that had to layoff educators or make other difficult choices. But holding schools harmless can be an unsustainable practice, some observers say, artificially inflating schools’ budgets and creating even more difficult financial decisions down the road as the city confronts increasingly expensive small schools.
Norma Vega, the principal of ELLIS Prep, a Bronx school geared toward serving newly arrived immigrants, said the decision was a “blessing.”
Her school’s enrollment is down roughly 30 students from last year and about 20 students under its projection for this year. That meant Vega would have had to pay back roughly $333,000 if the city had followed through with the midyear clawback.
Emily Paige, the principal of the Urban Assembly Unison school, a small middle school in Brooklyn, agreed.
She was on the hook for roughly $180,000. That would have meant cutting back on everything from trips, to computers, to overtime for staff members teaching Saturday school.
Paige already missed the deadline for this school year to cut teachers, which means she would have started next school year with a deficit and likely would have lost her English as a New Language coordinator, one of her newest hires.
The union representing principals, the Council for School Administrators, or CSA, claimed the move as a victory for its members, saying in an email to principals on Sunday its “top priority” this year has been ensuring the city kept its promise to hold schools harmless.
Michael Elsen-Rooney is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Michael at melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org.
Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy at azimmer@chalkbeat.org.
