001Mhm. >> Good evening. Thank you for being with us. In compliance with chapter 551 open meetings of the Texas government code, I call to order a public hearing of the Board of Trustees of the Austin Independent School District for Thursday, June 18th, 2026 at 5:13 p.m. A quorum of the board is physically present at the Austin ISD Central Office to conduct this meeting. This meeting is being broadcast on cable channel 22 through Spectrum and Suddenlink Broadband and on channel 99 through AT&T U-verse. Closed captioning in English is available on these platforms for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. Welcome and thank you for joining us. Uh we'll start with an opportunity for the public to share comments with the board. This time allows speakers to comment publicly pertaining to the fiscal year 2026-27
002budget. Members of the public wishing to participate in the public testimony portion of our meeting called a dedicated AISD phone line ahead of the meeting to sign up to speak in person or to audio record their remarks. This is an opportunity for the board to take part in listening to our community. And while we wish we could respond to each topic raised, the Texas Open Meetings Act does not authorize a board to engage in deliberation or take action on comments or complaints from members of the public if the subject is not on the meeting For comments related to posted agenda items, we will engage in deliberations or ask follow-up questions during the presentation of that item on our agenda. Tonight, we have nine people who signed up to speak in person and eight who left
003a recorded message. We'll begin with our in-person testimony. To provide as many opportunities for input as possible, each speaker will be allotted 1 minute, and no substitutions or yielding of time to others is permitted. Callers who signed up to speak in person will be invited to come to the microphone when their name is called. As you come to the microphone, you'll see a button. Please press that button to turn it on, and when the buzzer sounds, please make a final thought in one sentence. Whether you come to give a complaint or praise, please reference any staff member by position or abbreviated last name. And we ask that all audience members, whether speaking or not, please show respect for others at all times. Uh our in-person speakers tonight, I'll call the first four: Kenia Venegas, Eric
004Ramos, Emily Aguilar, and Britney C. >> All right. Good evening. My name is Eric Ramos, and I I'm speaking to you tonight basically to express my frustration. I understand a lot of work has gone into this process, and I don't want to diminish that. But the timeliness of all the details that we have been getting, I am not happy with. We have not had enough time to look through this to give you the feedback that you as a board need to know how it's going to impact those of us in the schools. You have to vote tonight without being fully informed. And I just want to say that I we did get a lot of documents today. I still haven't even had time to look at all of them, which makes it hard for us
005to tell you what unintended consequences come from some of these cuts. So, all I ask is that y'all be prepared come this fall to whether it be through budget amendments or other actions to start be ready to correct some of these unintended consequences, and to look at what areas are most hardly hit in these cuts, and next time you make cuts, let's protect those people first. Thank you. >> [applause] >> Hello, can you hear me? I am My name is Brittany, and I'm a parent that's in the program Communities in Schools. Communities in Schools is not just a program. They are people that are dedicated to helping our children. They are a liaison when we cannot get a hold of anybody in the school. They help us. They don't just financially help us. They mentally
006help us. I know I'm called million times where I was going through um a hard time, and they were just somebody that I can talk to. And to take this program away from the children while they're in school is just not right. I don't see it. I think it's a big resourceful um place for kids to go to, and they have group meetings to help them learn like social skills and any problems they may have. They have that because kids cannot use their phones in school and cannot call parents. They have their CIS worker to talk to when they are feeling like they're under pressure, under stress. So, I stress you guys to please take that into consideration before you decide um to let this program go. >> Thank you. And I called two more
007people in this round. Do we have Kenia Venegas or Emily Aguilar here? Okay, we'll move on. Uh Brielle C, Erica Hoffman, and Mara Masters. When you're ready, we'll go in the order people come up. >> Okay. I am Mara Masters, a teacher and Ballet Folklorico director at Austin High School, and a member of at Austin. Well, this was a state manufactured budget crisis. The district has not done a fair job of averting a major equity crisis. Staff from sped the sped department and some librarians who we know directly serve students have been cut as has CIS programs uh in that serve many vulnerable families. Late activity buses that allow many of my students who live in the trailer park communities of Oak Hill, which are not served by Cap Metro to stay after school for
008tutoring and to participate in extracurricular programs like the ballet folklorico have been cut. Meanwhile, top management faced none of these drastic cuts. At Austin got [snorts] details of the plan just a week ago allowing no time for meaningful consultation. Will an executive director come and give a personal conversation with each kid who's shut out from a program that was the center of their world? No, it's going to fall on those of us who are left on the front lines. >> Thank you. Do we have Brielle C or Erica Hoffen? Okay, next to the last two in-person speakers are Evelyn W and Von Suit. >> Good evening. My name is Evelyn Watson. I stand before you today to ask Austin ISD board to continue supporting communities in school. CIS is more than a program. It is
009a lifeline for students and families who face challenges both inside and outside the classroom. Everyday CIS helps students overcome barriers such as food insecurities, mental health struggles, attendance issues, and family hardships. When students have someone in their corner advocating for them, they are more than likely to stay in school, succeed academically, and graduate. Removing CIS will mean taking away critical support from students who need it the most. At a time when our children are facing insecurities, social and emotional challenges, we should be investing in a program and helping them thrive and not eliminating them. Austin ISD's mission is to ensure every student has the opportunity to succeed. CIS helps make this mission a reality. I urge you to keep CIS in Austin ISD to continue investing in success, well-being, and the future of our children.
010Thank you and have a great rest of your evening. >> Good evening, trustees. My name is Von Foot, and I live in Crestview Station. The district faces difficult choices driven by a structural deficit and declining enrollment. If excess capacity is the problem, then school consolidation should be seriously considered. Moving students from one campus to another may change attendance numbers, but it does not solve excess capacity. Families choose schools, neighborhoods, and walking routes based on the expectation of stability. Every time the district disrupts those ties, trust in the district is weakened, and more families consider leaving. I urge the board to address the structural deficit with a long-term plan that tackles the root cause while preserving strong neighborhoods and school communities whenever possible. Thank you. >> Thank you. I just want to call our other in-person
011speakers one more time before we go to our recorded messages. Cania Venegas, Emily Aguilar, Brielle C, or Erica Hoffman. Okay, thank you. If more people come in, I'll make a call after our recorded messages. Um all right, we're ready for the recorded messages for public testimony. Thank you. >> Hi, my name is Melinda Anderson. I'm an AISD graduate and 15-year employee of the district. I'm calling about the cuts that the board is voting on tonight. And I understand the tough situation that we are in, that the state has put us in. And if the board votes to cut or reduce librarian positions, my hope is that this will only be temporary. I also want to point out, as Trustee Knight asked a couple weeks ago, that the majority of the campuses being affected by reduced
012librarian positions are Title 1 campuses, 16 out of the 23 campuses. And that is concerning. I also want to point out that we are losing experienced certified librarians to other districts. And who are leaving the field not because they want to. They want to be in Austin ISD serving our students, but because of the concerns of the future of libraries in Austin ISD. >> Being part of CIS has made a huge difference for my family. After school events, communication, and resources, we build relationships that make us feel supported both inside and outside the classroom at Zavala. Knowing that there are people who generally care about my children's success and well-being gives me peace of mind. A strong school community doesn't just help students grow academically, it helps families grow together and feel connected. I am
013very grateful for the support, friendships, and opportunities that my son, and not only my son, but our school community has provided for my family. Thank you. >> Good evening, members of the board. My name is Portia, mom of two children in the sped program in Austin ISD. I'm asking you not to take away communities in schools. For my family, CIS is a partner that helps my children succeed both inside and outside the classroom. My daughter is being promoted to middle school from Dawson Elementary, and CIS has worked alongside me to help prepare her for this transition. They gathered information about district resources, answered questions, and hosted a one-day camp where incoming middle school students could experience what their days would look like before school even started. That preparation erased anxiety for both of us. As
014part As parents without a car, the transport the transportation CIS provides to dan- to dances, school events, and activities is not a luxury. It is a lifeline. My children are on the autism spectrum and struggle to make friends. CIS creates a safe space in our community where they can socialize, get homework help, create projects, and simply decompress after a long day at school. The power of CIS is in its name. It impacts reach re- Its impact reaches far beyond the classroom. It touches families and communities it serve. Please do not take away that from those children like mine. >> My name is Sharon D. Hill, and I serve as the CEO of CIS. I am calling on behalf of the 122 CIS staff members who dedicate their lives every day to serving AISD students alongside
015of you. Tonight, I am not asking you to believe me. I am asking you to believe the students and parents who stood at that podium in front of you and trusted you with some of the most personal moments of their lives. You have the data, and now you have the stories. You know this work changes lives. So, tonight is no longer about evidence. It is about leadership. Leadership is measured by whether we have the courage to protect what we know is working specifically for the students who need it most, especially when times are difficult. As you cast your vote tonight, I ask you to look beyond what can be cut and focus on what must be protected. Protect what is working. Protect all CIS services at current campuses, but at the minimum protect CIS in
016every band one school. Honor the courage of the families who stood before you over the last four weeks. >> Hi, my name is Kona B and I'm a single parent and participant of CIS at Pecan Springs Elementary. My daughter is 6 years old and she is now going to second grade. Um for the first year that she was at Pecan Springs, I needed a little bit of financial assistance um in between the benefits that I did receive and um I was working and also looking for work and CIS helps financially, they help with bus passes, they help with light bill assistance, they help with utilities um and they help with a plethora of things. They even have access to a food pantry. So, things like that when you're going from check to check or if
017you're not employed, but you're looking and actively searching for work and you just don't have much of an income, this is what we need and I really don't feel like it should be taken away from us. Um the single parents and low-income families, we need this. We need this program to be able to take care of our kids, give them what they need, provide for them in between checks or to even give us a little bit of help until we find an income for those who are actively looking for work. So, please do not take this >> Hi, this is Julie Hatfield. I'm the mom of Grant Hatfield and we are parents um at Lamar Middle School and I was calling because I wanted to ask the board to please protect fine arts programs um
018at Lamar and of course other others uh um schools too. But, I really feel that this is an important program for our youth for my son and others and it's such an amazing environment and it helps their brain and it would be a really horrible shame to cut the fine arts program, specifically band at Lamar Middle School. So, please consider that. I know you have a lot of things to think about, but fine arts is one of the last things we have that really helps um kids, you know, feel a part of a group >> [snorts] >> and I think it's super important. Thank you very much. Bye-bye. >> My name is Sullivan. I'm a rising sophomore in the advanced class of school guitar class at Anderson High School. Our guitar teacher may not be
019returning next year due to the budget cuts. I'm asking you please reconsider this decision. Our guitar teacher wasn't just our teacher. He's the reason our program was successful. Under his direction, our class earned sweepstakes at a varsity level competition. Some students advanced to UIL state. We worked really hard and we achieved a lot. Our program is also one of the most accessible in the school district. Guitar costs about $30 while other music programs like band costs 500. For some students, this is the only way they can be a part of music at all. We already have the guitars, so the material investment has already been made. Guitar is the best part of my day. It gives me something to look forward to and it helps me stay motivated in the school. Please keep our guitar
020teacher so we can keep learning and proving and representing our school. Thank you. >> My name is Eunice O'Yang. I'm an AISD parent and also a substitute teacher who sees our classroom's daily reality. I'm deeply concerned that this revised budget bridges a financial gap by degrading the working conditions of our teachers. Reducing planning periods to the state minimum and expanding class sizes asks our teacher to do more with less support. My children in the school is a band four campus heavily impacted by these cuts. We're losing five teachers, three retiring staff and two teacher assistants. On top of that, our essential areas are being slashed to 1.5 positions, forcing teachers to split time between two campuses. This creates immense unsustainable strain. If we squeeze our educators like this, we will see an exodus of talent
021to neighboring districts, a dropping classroom quality, and families following them out the door. Please protect teacher time and support systems. Thank you. >> Thank you to all of our callers who left recorded messages. Um, I saw a few more people come into the room. We have a few people who signed up to speak in person who haven't had the opportunity yet, so I'm going to call the names, uh, and if you're here and wish to make a comment, we would love to hear from you. Uh, it's Kania Benegas, Emily Aguilar, Brielle C, and Erica Hoffman. Okay. Thank you all. Uh, so this will conclude our public testimony for the hearing. Uh, please feel free to share comments or questions with the board by email at [email protected]. Uh, and trustees, if you have any questions or
022comments about non-agenda topics raised in public comment, you're welcome to share them now. I think we have one thing on our agenda, so I think we can probably discuss them all when we start discussing the budget. Everyone good with that? Okay, perfect. Um, so we will move on to a presentation of the fiscal year, uh, '26-'27 proposed general fund, food service, and debt service budgets. And Mr. Segura, would you please introduce the item? >> Uh, thank you, trustees. Um, I'd like to invite Keshia Montgomery, our chief financial officer, uh, to assist me in the, um, presentation regarding the proposed '20 fiscal year '26-'27 proposed budget. Uh, before we get going, um, I just want to can acknowledge the the the pain, the just the the disruption, the just severe just kind of um strain that
023has been within our system for the last many months as we've gone through this process. Um it is very, very difficult uh to bring forward a budget that is balanced um when there are so many pressures within public education. We heard from our community, we hear it from other districts, we hear it across the state. Um we are not as a state properly funding public education and we're at a point where there is very little that we can do to get back to a balanced budget that doesn't create disruption and ultimately reduce the number of staff in Austin ISD. And we didn't get here overnight and we didn't get here by accident. Every single person in this organization has a role uh and serves our students. And it's not going to um be repaired overnight.
024It's going to take time as we navigate through the budget and ultimately um have to implement um what if it is approved. I also want to um talk briefly about just what's happening um as a organization. There's immense pain within our schools. There's immense pain within our service center. There's immense pain within our transportation department and also within this building. Um I think sometimes when there's that type of pain in a system and a community um it can feel very kind of isolating. Um but I have spoken and and do spend time with lots of individuals in this organization and it is district wide, city wide and as we go through this presentation, there are things as we've talked about for weeks now that are painful and unfortunately if we do not do this and
025if we do not bring a budget forward that A is approved and B begins to improve the fund balance, we run a real risk when it comes to our ability to serve our students in a way that aligns with who we are as an organization. It's unfortunate, it's sad, it's disappointing. And it's happening everywhere in the state of Texas. So with that, I'll hand it over to Katrina to take us through several of the slides. We'll kind of work together through them. But just wanted to make that point before we get going. Thank you, Katrina. >> Good afternoon afternoons, President Boswell, trustee Superintendent Segura. [snorts] So we're as our superintendent said, this is a have been a daunting process. We definitely understand the impact that it is has has had on our campuses and our
026staff. Um but we're going to continuously talk through this and how we can get through this together. So this is the 26-27 proposed budget for adoption. And you can see in the lighter blue it says general fund under public notice. So what we have to do is when we filed our public notice, this is the budget that we presented and so now we have to merge the two. We're going to spend a little time on this slide talking about why. So the general fund public notice when we originally did our recommended budget, it was assuming that we would end our FY 25 26, which is this current fiscal year, at a 15% fund balance. And we presented to the board and the community last week on June 11th that we're projecting that we will not
027make the 15%. And so what that does is there's many reasons why. Some of the reasons are because of the one thing we've talked about is the land sale of Rosedale for $26 million. We're also going to have some slides that are going to talk about how our enrollment has decreased as well as our average daily attendance. And then there's going to be some other slides where we kind of look at how did we get here. And we'll talk about more in depth of how not making our projection for FY 25 26 at 15% and has going to impact us for FY 26 27. So the original general fund public notice was at assuming or projecting that we would end 25 26 at a 15% fund balance. And so you can see our revenue is
028$1,477 million. We'll talk more in depth about those assumptions that we used. Recapture is $630 million and our operating expenditures is $907 million. And the first thing you can see is something we've talked about is again our operating expenditures and our our recapture expenditures are more than the revenue that we're bringing in. And so this is something we've talked a lot about about having a balanced budget. And so what you see below the line, you see property monetization for $60 million. So the district is putting forth in this proposed budget four properties for a total of $60 million. And then that gets us to a balanced budget, which means what we're projecting our revenue is less our recapture, less operating expenditures, and also including property monetizations, we will get to a zero dollar um we
029will balance for FY26-27. So, let's talk about 25-26. So, some of the reasons we didn't make achieve the goal, the $26 million of um Ro- Rosedale sale, the sale for Brooke, we originally estimated it at 9 million, it's coming in at 16.9 million. And there were other strategies that we had that we were going to try to achieve, and some of them made and some of them did not. Some of them were um the amounts that we thought that they were, and some of them were not. And so, with along with all of those things is why for FY25-26, we're not going to make our 15% goal. And then you see in general fund, you see the revenue is still consistent or constant, the recapture is constant, but you now see our operating expenditures are
030$887 million. And I want us to talk about again what happened. You're going to hear me talk about a lot about weaving in 25-26 because what we we hear, like we knew that Rosedale wasn't going to make, and why didn't we pivot? And one of the reasons we didn't pivot as quickly as we should have is because 88% of our budget is people. And so, that makes it very challenging to pivot and move to make up those cha- those changes in the system. And so, what I'm we're presenting now is that now that we were clear for 25-26, we're not going to make the goal, we're pivoting now. And so, what that means is we had to come up with an additional $20 million to land us at a 13% fund balance. So, what we
031went back over this last week since we talked to you on June um June 11th, it's found $20 million is in reductions. And so, we're going to talk in depth about what that is. So again, you have your net change under general fund, which is a negative $40 million. Even with the additional $20 million reduction, which our operating expenditures and and our recapture is still more than our revenue. So we have a negative $40 million, and then we have our property monetization for $60 million. And now that shows that we're contributing $20 million into our fund balance. And so what this is doing is clearly us saying we missed the mark in 25-26, but let's not delay it on for 26-27 or say that we're going to do it by make it have reductions in
032um slowing spending down. We're saying immediately here that when we propose this budget, this budget is going to include the change that we need to make for um not making the goal in 25-26. And then you'll see you have your food service fund, you have your debt service fund, and then you have your total governmental funds. This next slide is general fund expenditures by function. And so what this slide shows is all of our expenses in a function code. It shows our FY 25-26 adopted budget. And this $1 billion 707 million is our operating expenditures plus recapture. And then again, you see our public notice. So we want to make sure that everyone in the community is aware of what is different at public notice versus what we're presenting today. So the public notice is
033$1 billion 536 million. So the change from FY 25-26 adopted to the 26-27 public notice is $170 million. So then you can see the change in percentage. And then to the far right, now we have a proposed, which is $1 billion 516 million. dollars. And the change in the public notice and the change in what we're proposing today is 20 million dollars. So, you can see there's a total between if you look at the change adoption, the 170 million dollars and the 20 million dollars. So, we'll talk about the 190 million dollars in a second. When we talk about our unassigned percentage and how do we calculated it, it is our unassigned fund balance over our operating expenditures. And so, we want to spend some time today making sure that our community, our board, and
034our staff are going along with us about the changes that have been made over the last week. So, FY 25-26, again, we were projecting that we would land at a 15% so that meant we would start off 26-27 with a 15% fund balance. Our operating expenditures was 900 around approximately 907 million dollars. Our unassigned fund balance and that would leave us with the unassigned fund balance of 15.5. And so, that was the original proposal preliminary information that you received from us. And so, now in the middle, you have a 10% projection showing that if we end the year at 25-26 at a 10% fund balance, expenditures are 906 million, that would make our unassigned fund balance 96.4 million and 10.6%. So, what this middle slide is showing is if we'd made no additional cuts, if
035we just stopped at the 185 million and we ended the 25-26 fiscal year at 10% and did nothing else, it would have our fund balance projected for FY 26-27 at 10.6%. And then in the far right, this is the budget that we're proposing today. You have FY 25-26 saying that we're going to end the year at a 10% and then now you can see the $886 million that you saw that we've reduced the $20 million. That will increase our fund balance to $116 million and that will land us with 13%. So again, the far left-hand column is where we originally um did the um where we originally proposed or we originally did our recommended budget for FY26-27. The second, the middle box is if we did if we net made no further corrections because we
036want our community and board to know where unassigned fund balance percentage would land. And then to the far right is what we're proposing here today. So our general fund assumptions, we've talked about this in workshops. How should we land looking at our enrollment? Um our enrollment number projected is 68,329. Our average daily attendance is 59,717. You have your change in property values of which we've discussed um of 3%. So the 25-26 change in the ADA and enrollment, and again, we're showing we're weaving all of this through of how we did not make the projection for 25-26. So you can see we have under budget adoption our refined ADA is 64,100 and our enrollment for our budget was adopted at 72,303. And you could see where we are at first 6 weeks, our refined ADA versus
037first 6 weeks and second 6 weeks and third 6 weeks, fourth, fifth, and sixth. And you can see our enrollment numbers are going down and our ADA numbers are going down. And so as this continuously happens, it's more it's a challenge because that means we're getting less revenue, but we have not reduced our expenses at the same rate that we are reducing our revenue. So when we talk about what we need to do differently for 26-27, we need to be really clear as we see these numbers change, we need to instantly start making changes and reducing our expenses. So, this slide is a ADA versus enrollment. It's another one so you can see refined ADA for FY 24-25, our budget adoption is 64,100. We ended the year at 63,758. It was a difference of 342,
038so a variance of 0.5. And then the exact the same logic for enrollment. What we want to point out here for FY 24-25 is that even though our enrollment had decreased and our average daily attendance had decreased, we were able to make up these reductions in revenue. And so, a 1% revenue a 1% revenue loss, we were able to make that up. But so, that's why we were able to end 24-25 at a more favorable place. For FY 25-26, you could see we did budget adoption at 64,100. And I want to be clear, this this refined ADA that we did for budget adoption, our refined ADA was higher. So, when we did the projection, we had already decreased the refined ADA. So, our refined ADA was 64,100. Our enrollment number was 72,303. And you could
039see that our refined ADA is 61,382 and our enrollment is 69,079. So, you could see ADA has gone down 2,717 and our enrollment has gone down 3,224. So, when you look at these percentages, this is one of another reason why it was really hard for us to make the pivot for 25-26. Because even though we planned and did the budget adoption conservatively, then our numbers decrease much faster. Um our numbers decreased um at a rate that we had not predicted. So, here's our implemented budget reduction. So, this shows that originally when you saw this slide last time, it had 185 million, and now we're saying it's 205 because we had the 185 and we've added the $20 million that we talked about to get us to the 13%. So, here you have district-wide budget reductions
040is 28 millions, 28 million property monetizations is 60 million, campuses is 33 million, departments is 36 million. But, remember we had to go back to our to our departments and say that we need additional reductions. So, our departments are doing 36 million plus 17, which is a total of 53 million. And then you have district-wide reductions of 31 million for a total of 205 million dollars. So, we're going to dive into these numbers a little bit more for more clarification. So, reductions to support fund balance at 13%. This is how the additional $20 million um how we um designed the $20 million over this last week. So, you have increased class ratios, you have band two no tap campuses, and band one no tap campuses. That's for an estimated $1 million. And then you have
041elementary essential areas band three only for teachers and TAs totaling $1.44 million. Substitute cost reductions for $2 million. We still We have a new um chief officer, and we've been talking a lot about how can we reduce our substitute costs. He has some great ideas. Stipend cost reduction um alignment to our to TASB study that our stipends are still high. Um, how can we uh we're contributing $4 million additional dollars in stipends reductions and benefits. So, um we're looking at ways that we can provide great plans for our staff um and how we we have there's multiple options or ways that we could do this um but a savings to the district of $3.72 million. Central leadership attrition, so that's director and above, um $1 million. Attrition [clears throat] for the district for the months
042of July through December $5.34 million. We've worked with talent strategy on this number. This number is very low. We want it to be very conservative. Um, but $5.34 million overtime, um there's some strategies about how we can continuously reduce overtime for $1.5 million. And then we put real estate here as this is another option, but we haven't um we haven't monetized the we haven't added a dollar amount. So, these are all of the reductions to support us getting from 10% to 13% for a total of $20 million. So, for FY25-26 and 26-27 expenditure change. So, uh when I showed it to you when we talked about it previously, I said remember the 190.8, right? 191. 190.8. So, you see proposed increases, um school improvement investment, um there was $17 million um invested in our campuses
043for taps, um TRS on behalf is an increase of $11 million, teacher incentive allotment, um HB2 cost, and then additional HB2 initial cost for staff increases. And then you have proposed decreases, and these are campus adjustments and consolidations because we did campus school um consolidations this year for a reduction of $20 million, campus staffing ratios $31 million. Duty day adjustments are impacts for central office staff who will be losing um um 5 days worth of pay. And but they will it will be offset by five PTO or vacation days. Department force reductions is $17 million here at central. Department non-staffing is 14 million. Department staffing is 8 million. You have substitute costs of 4 million. We've collapsed vacancies of 15 million and this is just vacancies at central office. We have not collapsed any vacancies
044at our campuses. Pending district and leveling attrition, 31 million. Recapture adjustment and reductions to support the 13% is 20 million. So, if you take the total increases less the total in decreases, you could see that's why we have net reductions of 192 million. So, our superintendent spoke earlier about the impacts on our campuses and our staff as well as central office. So, this is a slide we presented before. We've added a a section at the bottom, but you can see elementary teachers, you can see the number that have been impacted by our ratio changes. And I want to be clear, this is this is this slide is prior to the information that we just presented for the 20 million. So, our elementary teachers have been impacted by 45 and then the talent strategy department has
045broken it out by that's 36 teachers, nine non-certified. Um they 30 teachers have been placed and then placements not needed it says 12. And I want to spend some time on this because when I talked to talent strategy today, I I wanted us to be clear about what placement not needed is. And the additional clarification I received today is that that just meant that the teacher might have found another position at their campus. So, they did not need to be placed by Talent Strategy. That does not mean that these are people that are separated from our district. And then you have need placement three. So, you can go down and you can see each one of the lines, elementary teachers, middle middle school teachers, high school teachers. You can see essential areas. This is an
046area that Talent Strategy is really working on trying to make sure we can figure out how to place. Um they felt confident that we can place as we get people we get our information throughout the end of the year and our uncertified teachers and once we see how they're impacted. You have counselors, assistant principals, and librarians. And then you have departments and this is the new item here. So, there's going to be a slide I think that you're going to see next that shows that there were 84 central office staff impacted. Of those 69 people have been placed or it could be as simple as some people's calendars days changed from 216 or 207 to 197. But this may and then placements not needed is 15. So, one of the things I want to we
047want to be clear with this this slide is we clearly understand that there's been lots of disruption to our district, our staff. Um but we the Talent Strategy Department and everyone is supporting trying to make sure that even with all of these reductions, we're trying to make sure that our staff have somewhere to land. So, even though it's been very disruptive, making sure that our it might be you're no longer in finance, you're in T L L. I'm making this up. Or you might not be a campus A, you're a campus B. But we're doing Talent Strategy and we're supporting. They're doing everything they can they can that even though this is very disruptive, that our staff still have homes to attend. And so, this is the slide, departmental impacted position reductions. So, this is
048general fund only, and the field FTE is the 84 that you just saw on the previous slide. And this talks about um field FTEs, how many positions cuz we we were hearing how many actual positions, how many actual um positions were actually filled. And it's 84. We had vacant um positions of 196 for a total of 280.55. And then you can see the savings is broke out broken out by field, 8.53. Vacant is 15.02 for total savings of 23.54 million dollars. And then central office reductions, and we wanted to talk about this because um our superintendent just clearly stated that this is pain that the district is feeling, our campuses are feeling, um but also my peers here at central office. So, central office, if you look, it's broken out between non-staffing for a total
049of 29.64 million, as well as staffing of 23.54 for a total of 53 million dollars. Now, I want to be clear that this slide can continuously change. The 17 million that we talked about was forced reductions. We forced it out of everyone's non-staffing dollars. So, a leader can come back and say, "I don't want it out of my non-staffing. I want to change it to staffing." So, these numbers can continuously fluctuate, but the total will remain the same. The allocation between non-staffing and staffing can change, but the total should not change. And then here's the change in our organizational budget. So, what we look we're looking at here is FY24-25 our adopted budget. It's 954 million dollars. For FY25-26, the adopted budget was 991 million dollars, and an increase. And then FY26-27, our proposed budget
050is 887 million. So, you could see all the work that happened between 25-26 and 26-27. You also see adopted FTEs for 24-25, 10,298. And then you can see that there's an increase of adopted FTEs for 25-26 for 10,392. And then you see for 26-27, our proposed FTE full-time equivalents is 9,744. So, you We've talked clearly about a lot of the work that's happened from 25-26 to 26-27. And then for 24-25 to 25-26, a lot of that you can see is in staffing. We increased our staffing in a few different departments. One of the departments specifically, you would see here is special education. And special education has increased because what we've done over the years is we've tried to reduce our reliance on contractors. And the special education has been department has been making great waves
051in reducing our reliance on on contractors instead of actually having staff here at the district. I believe the last time I talked to Dr. Lee or Dr. Baker, they were down to five contractors. So, then this next slide changes in senior leadership. You see for FY25-26, we had adopted FTEs of 57.20. So, this change in senior leadership is executive director and above. And then you can also see proposed FTEs are 50. So, there's a change in FTEs or decrease of 7.20. >> [clears throat] >> So, FY26-27, our budget stabilization timeline. We presented this last week, but I want us to We want to make sure that we're consistently talking about there's still in FY26-27 an additional $31 million that will need to be reduced and we're we're saying that we're going to do that from
052July through December of 2026 and it will happen through leveling, attrition, and restructure. And then there's an additional $60 million for FY27-28 which is the property sales that we will work to reduce from July through January. And we want to make sure that we're keeping present about that this work is not done. Even though there's a lot of hard work that has happened, there is going to be additional reductions needed for FY in the year FY26-27 and then when we're planning for the budget for FY27-28, we know at the minimum we'll have to reduce the $60 million for the land sales that we're proposing for FY26-27. And then we have budget consent of FY27-28 budget reductions. We're going to the we have a develop budget development calendar where we're going to present items to the
053board in October and November so that we can solidify. This is one of the improvements we're going to do this year so that we can solidify with agreement with the board what the reductions are going to be so that we can start notifying our staff earlier and start making decisions earlier sooner rather than later. And then we have our budget adoption in June of 2027. One of the things the superintendent and I worked on is an updated budget timeline and I do want to spend a little time on this slide to talk about in June 18th what we're doing which is today. The FY26-27 we're saying our starting point is 10%. FY26-27 what the additional reductions are for 13% we've talked about is $20 million. If we wanted to get to 15% that'll be $36
054million in reduction. So, we're already taking the 20 million. We'd have to take an additional $16 million reductions for FY26-27 if we wanted to get to 15%. Um recommendations made by superintendent to cover the difference which we've talked we've talked about. Um an updated budget calendar vote which is on the agenda for later this afternoon. And then um on July 20th um the staff is we're going to give a written update of where we're projecting our June 25-26 financials will land and also a fund balance update. So, not only are we saying as an administration led by our superintendent that we are going to um monitor the information. We're going to be we're going to present the information more which means our fund balance, our cash balance, and our expenditures and then also pivot as
055needed. We receive our T-cad certified values for FY26-27 on July 25th. So, that's the final numbers. And then on August 13th we have what we will um that is our presentation to the board. So, sustaining fiscal discipline. Um we know that there are some things that we can improve upon. And so, here are some of the things that we're going to talk about. Staffing and workflow, updated approval workflows to further control staffing. That's making sure that talent strategy and finance are in the loop when a position is approved, when a position is increased, that talent strategy and finance are always lockstep so that we are aware of how it the impact is for our budget. Resource allocation, uphold class size ratios. We talked about this when we met find the finance teams we met with
056Tracy Ginsberg and um Amanda Bronson. And one of the things they talked about is almost every school district has class size ratios, but none of them honor them. And so, that was clearly where we were as a district. And so, this is something that we've changed and updated our ratios this year, and we need to uphold our ratios. If our ratios state this, we need to uphold it. In the past, we've had project a principal could say, "Oh, I'm going to I'm going to have additional students, or uh that my numbers are going to increase, the enrollment is coming." And so, we would give the additional allocation. So, upholding our class ratios is going to be very important. Um continuously reviewing our stipends as well as our substitute costs, making sure that we're always going
057through um and clearly understanding how we're spending our expenses our expenditures for staffing. Contract management, outcome-based contracting, making sure that we're clear about what the What are we receiving from our vendors? What is the contract? What is the outcome? What are our students getting from it? Not just having a contract and doing it again next year and the next year and next year. Um shifting from reactive correction to consistent compliant purchasing practices. One of the things we have quite a few un um um unratified purchases, which just means that um people are our staff have been going out, signing contracts, getting invoices, procuring services without following the proper steps. And so, um Kenneth and I have I'm sorry, our general counsel and I have a meeting to start talking about how we can improve upon
058these processes and make sure that we're clear with our staff that you just can't go out and purchase something without a purchase order. You can't just go out and legally bind the district um by signing a contract. Budget oversight, yearly department budget reviews. This is something um the superintendent and I are committed to is what we did this year um to continuously refine what all the work that the team has done, the line-by-line budgeting. We can't just do it one time and let it stop. We have to continuously move forward with that work. And monthly budget updates to the Board of Trustees, including where our fund balance is, where our expenditures and revenue are, and then also our cash balance. So, I'm going to turn it over to our superintendent to take over the next
059two slides. >> Yes, uh thank you, Katrina. If you can go back a slide, I think there's something here. I Um when it comes to oversight and and staffing allocations, this is a an area of significant improvement for the district. Making sure that talent and strategy and the process that we use to release allocations is locked in with finance. So, we've modified our processes and and now right, wrong, or indifferent, um they go all the way up through me um for the time being until the system is is at a point where we have the controls in place that ensure that the allocations are meeting um the needs of our students and and adhering to our our ratios. The other thing I wanted to is quickly touch on is um when Katrina talks about uh
060staff and and the spending, uh what often happens is the person who is is spending isn't the person responsible for the budget. Um and and and so the way to to create a control around that is to kind of um be very clear about the expenditures that are approved, making sure that you cannot release a purchase order or even start a procurement process uh unless the funds are available unless it and also um unless it's been approved by an executive director that aligns with our overall budget because they are the ones who are responsible for it. And so, there aren't um contracts being signed by any means, but there are uh lots of requests that go out that aren't necessarily aligned to the budget because the request is coming from someone who doesn't own the
061budget. Um so, as we move uh away from the control side, I did want to provide an update regarding uh the planning around the secondary schools um hub stop planning. Uh there's been lots of questions around this. I want to be really clear. Um we are effectively just wanting to create a system that provides access to all of our students, but in a way that uh creates fewer stops. Um right now transportation is a process of conducting site visits to identify the most effective and safe stop locations. Uh there are a variety of different locations, you know, they could be community centers within a neighborhood. Uh could be Austin libraries. It could be uh ACC. Could be our schools. There's lots of things um that we could uh use. Uh and and really the idea
062here is instead of stopping block by block, you create kind of a hub within a neighborhood. Um and there's lots of ways to do it. We'll continue to refine the process throughout the first month uh and then uh make adjustments. Families are going to receive letters um by uh June 25th uh to just provide an update as as to what to expect. Um the there isn't necessarily a true threshold for like distance because all distances are are different relative to the type of thoroughfares in the area. Um but we are being um very thoughtful about our approach. Uh the bus finder um will be updated and available on August 3rd uh so that families can view all of their information. In this process, we do every year. Uh so it's it's not uncommon for us
063to do it. We just are reconfiguring the number of stops. Um and that will thereby reduce the number of routes, which will reduce the number of um uh staff needed to to run those routes. Uh as we go to the last slide, uh one of the things I just wanted to kind of tie back all together is the alignment of the budget with our scorecard. Uh you know, everything that we do is in service to our students uh to ensure that they are getting um what they need to be successful and um and do it in a way that aligns with who we are, our values, and you know, for the for the last many, many years, predates me, predates this board, uh there have been lots of decisions made uh and we've benefited from
064an ever-increasing property value kind of environment within Austin. And we're at a point now with the pressures where we have to protect the best of who we are, and at the same time continue to support the outcomes which which have been moving. And so, um this budget is a a receipt. Uh it is a document that kind of binds us to, you know, who we are. Um it is a difficult budget to bring forward to our board. Um it it has been very hard. Uh and it's going to be continue to be hard as we implement. Um but want to extend just all the grace um and appreciation to our staff, to our families um that unfortunately had to go through this with us. Um there's there are there are no good choices at this
065point. Um so, with that, I'll um hand it over to President Boswell, and the team and I will answer any questions that the board may have. >> Thank you very much, Ms. Montgomery and Superintendent Segura for this. Uh trustees, who has comments or questions to start? Uh Vice President Foster or Secretary Foster. Thank you. >> I I have I have several, and I'll um try to group them, and I'll try to be um succinct. Um but to uh just signal where I'm going. I have um and and some of this we we have a consent item on our budget calendaring. And I do have questions going forward. So, some of what I'm asking has to do with sort of our our near future, but some of it um accrues to this moment as well. And
066what I'm really concerned about is forecasting. Um I I'm just kind of stymied or confused and uh it feels like the variables there's so many variables coming from so many angles that our capacity to forecast effectively is really low. And in a context where we're not really able to forecast well how do we get a budget, right? So, just a couple of the buckets um we said as as one I don't even it's know if it's low-hanging fruit, but we said we want to sell four campuses for $60 million. This ain't the greatest market in the world. And so I have concerns. And then also you know, community speaks up and says, you know, raises concerns, lawsuits. There There's a whole bunch of things that go in that complicate our sales. Now on the other
067hand, there's been an adaptive reuse that's been really powerful and not really talked about like Anita Coy and there's you know, you all have done dynamic things with our properties. That said um we've got a whole bunch of property surplussed. Is there some flex or flexibility in terms of selling this many properties to get the 60 million? Is 60 million the North Star? And so 60 million's the North Star with the sale of properties being it and so it could be a combination, things could shift. So, that's the first question is >> Tell me about that. >> Yeah, so um great question, Trustee Foster. Um I have uh been here in Austin ISD for 8 years and have um been a part of lots of different transactions and you're absolutely right. You know, we don't
068always know how the property's going to transact. Is it a capitalized ground lease? Is it a feasible transaction? Um the number that's here is a number that is uh conservative in the sense that um given market conditions, given the entitlements, given the quantity of properties that we have that could be monetized, 60 million is a number that I think we will um be able to achieve with a high probability of certainty. Um I I've been a little anxious about quantifying the number. We put four because I think it's important to note that I think it'll be um a four. I don't know which combination of four and if needed, you know, it it may be a fifth. Um or or some because there's there's just lots of different ways that this could get done. Uh
069but at the end of the day, and there are things that we as a system have not put a dollar on, but we know will yield um some value. So, I would say generally speaking regarding the portfolio and the work that we've done, everything that's been out in the community, um we're confident that $60 million is a a very reasonable, executable amount within the fiscal year. Um yeah. >> So, for me that that logic is sound and I appreciate that. And then on the community side, unfortunately or fortunately, we're we're we're community's going to be weighing in and what we're introducing is some flexibility that also means that, you know, communities are going to step up and say, "We're going to have to be ready for those hard conversations with our communities." >> Yeah, interesting
070Foster. I think um this is one of the things that I think we've improved upon. James Valadez, who's the execu- who's our director of real estate, um Jamie Miller, who's our um operations officer, uh they're now in round two of these um meetings where we're having conversations with our community regarding surplus and uh there is uh kind of a description of what the properties will likely become or the kind of the the area that we're going to explore and that information was used to inform the number that's on the list. So, I'm I would be surprised if there was a real surprise if we went a different direction because we are aligned with what we've been saying out in the community and also what we've been hearing back. And so, when you look at the
071properties that have been discussed for surplus, uh you'll see that there are some that have been identified for monetization and there's some that haven't been, and that aligns with this number. >> Okay. >> Uh so, I I I guess what I would say I'd be surprised if you would see the same type of response because we've been pretty clear now with the ranking which ones are likely to be monetized in that way. >> Got it. >> have been for a little while, but of course we'll we'll always work with community and and do the best we can to make adjustments, but >> Got it. And side note, it really bums me out to spend this much time talking about this and not talking about our students and our kids. Um but this is what we
072need to talk about in in this moment. So, the next thing um Um we we've kind of taken out some payday loans um and those were not anticipated and built in well, the interest associated with those, which were considerable, were not anticipated or or considered. So, how many times do we anticipate taking out payday loans in the upcoming year um and at what cost? >> Yes, thank you, Trustee Foster. So, for FY 26-27, one, and we're refining the numbers now to see how much because we're going to do exactly what we did last year is to make sure that we're monitoring the spend, looking at accounts payable, projecting what our payroll is, going to be kind of consistent. Um and then we met today with our financial advisors for them to start working on it
073to tell us like what the interest rate would be. So, we're starting to plan it out now. >> Got it. And and I I Sorry. >> Well, I I would just I just wanted to um maybe could have introduced a different term. Uh I I understand payday loan. Um I think the only concern is the payday loan assumes a an egregious interest rate. Um typically, you know, like in the hundreds of percent in in many cases. Uh that's not what this is. This is a a interest rate that is in alignment with our bond rating, the cash on hand, the property values. Just so if if there are community members out there that maybe respond and say, you know, Matthias, you can get a better deal than that. I That's in fact true. We are,
074you know, getting these competitive rates as we can. So, I prefer to use maybe like a bridge loan. Um but I just I just cuz I had that question come up um already the whole time. >> so hard not to make snarky jokes. >> know. I know. I know. I know. But, I just I'm Hey, trust me. I've had I've done a payday loan years ago. I just trying to It's just >> So, and uh and and I appreciate I appreciate the nuance. >> it's a good question. >> Um I appreciate the nuance and and it is important and I don't mean to be um light with something important. On the other hand, we're not talking about $5,000, tens of thousands. We're talking about hundreds of thousands of dollars in interest. So, even if the
075rate is low, we're on numbers, these are impactful, you know. Um so, I would love if we >> Mhm. >> Sadly, like we're going to do it. We know we're going to do it. We build it in. Not Here's a second one that was unanticipated. Here's a third one that was unanticipated. And it goes to the question of this forecasting. So, I want to lift up that we're doing this that we that we are in a position of having to engage this practice, but I'd love for us to account for it, you know, uh up ahead. Um >> I'm so sorry. You've asked actually answered one of my questions, but I just need a little bit of clarity cuz my question was will we still have to borrow money at 13 per- 13.1%? So, we're
076saying yes? >> The 13.1% fund balance. >> Oh. >> Right. >> So, the amount we will have to borrow money, Trustee Hunter. Period. But, it won't necessarily be at 13%. I believe last year when we borrowed it, it was like at 4.6%. >> No, I mean like the fund balance cuz at 10% we knew, right? At 15% we're good, but we're going to be at 13%. So, thank you, Kevin. Yes. >> Yeah, and and just to put a finer point on that, Trustee Hunter, I I'm not so certain that 15% that you would actually not draw down or even at 18%. I mean, it really you have to have a significant amount of of cash on hand given the flow and the payroll per month and the way that, you know, we get revenue from
077the from the tax appraisal district. So, I just I don't want to make make it tied to a percent cuz it could fluctuate. >> And this is this is really I think valuable for our community as part of the education process of why the funds balance is so important. It is a healthy fund balance that keeps us from making these tough decisions that cost us more money. All right, the low fund balance is what has us have to go out and secure these uh extra loans. Um so, you know, Trustee Dare I say who, you know, he will tell us very quickly about what's going on in special ed. And I'm uh just to to raise something that I know would be on your mind and it's in line with this. The federal government is
078shifting dramatically in terms of the Department of Ed and sending this office over here and that office over there. And so, what percentage of our budget comes from the federal government grants, um reimbursements, etc. Um as a first question and then what that directly goes to is do we account for how do we account for unpredictability, which is crazy to say, unpredictability from the federal government in terms of them paying us on time or them paying us what they're supposed to, etc. >> Yeah, so I'll start I'll start with the second part of the question first. Um It it is very unpredictable. Um I will say that a year ago I had a very very similar conversation with about 100 people in this building in the room upstairs because um title dollars were frozen for
079a period of time while the Department of Education was evaluating whether they were you know whether they should be frozen or not or whether they should and so that freeze alone uh was it was a significant thing to to navigate. And so the way that we're kind of navigating the uncertainty is with extreme clarity and communicating with people like you are funded by a funding source that is unstable. Like that unfortunately that's just where we are. Um not Title I so much, IDEA not as much, but generally you know, Title IV, there are other title dollars and grants that we get from the federal government that have been unstable the last couple years. And I would also say to an extent, I mean even revenue that we get or funds we get from the city
080of Austin. I mean those have been somewhat unstable as you know, parent support specialists have been impacted. So we have to be really clear if there is a a person who's funded with a alternative funding source that's not tied to 199, we are limited in how we can protect the position once that funding source changes. Uh and the reason I say that is because we don't know what's going to happen. Um there it could be even the the transition to block grants or whatever they end up deciding to do, the delay alone could have a significant impact in our ability to cover payroll. Let's say you you delay 6 to 8 weeks, payroll's over $50 million a month. Um you don't have the funding source, well now you're you're back in a position and these
081are not small swings. Uh so I don't know the specifics as far as um I'd probably pick them up as far as the percent of the kind of [clears throat] special education division that's paid for using you know, IDEA versus various titles. Um but I can pull that fairly quickly. Unless you you probably don't have it on hand, but I can get that. >> So if if I could parent on this, so I just wanted to clarify cuz when I'm looking at this, if I'm reading correctly, um moving Y'all are moving positions into idea B, right? >> Yes. Some. >> So you know, I I'm seeing maybe between between three or four and a half million of sped changes. And I'm concerned so very I mean just as an example among all these other parts,
082but I I fully expect that idea B funding they're going to have to transfer it to health and human services. Like I mean they're affecting that now. So I do expect that those grants that that funding is going to get delayed the same as last year's. I mean that that's a very real concern for me. You know, I don't think that's all of this three to 4.5 million, but it's certainly close to a million maybe. >> Yeah, and >> Those those I mean and those are like evaluation specialists, monolingual educational diagnosticians, facilitators, clerks, compliance specialists. I get that we're moving them to the grant to affect space in the general fund, but Well, to Yeah. Regardless of the language, my concern there is that we're relying on that grant funding coming in for August. And
083and there's a very real chance that that's at the very minimum going to be delayed. And my recollection last year was the positions that got delayed, it was over a month, and we had to reassign all those people like those positions didn't get recovered. >> Two things. Um the first is IDEA funding can only pay for certain things. Right? I don't have So if you don't use the funds and you don't assign like expense to them, then you're not able to leverage them in the same way. So, it's it's really important that as we go through this process, we are tying the PIP code to the um to the expense. Uh and so, as you go through and try to find efficient try to reduce your overall cost, anytime you can align an expense that
084will be fully covered cuz there are a lot lots of people in this building, there are lots of expenses that just will not be covered with those grants. They don't qualify. And so, we have to marry [snorts] up the the ones that qualify, kind of fill that grant allocation to the highest possible limit because if not, then you potentially lose it. Uh and at the same time, kind of balance out this real acknowledgement that at the end of the day, if there is a fluctuation, we have to manage through it. Regarding what happened with title funds, there was a delay. Uh it was multiple weeks. Um we prepared everybody, we had conversations. Um they were unfrozen after a period of time, and we're able to navigate that within our own system. Uh and that number
085was probably even north of 4 million given the number of people that I talked to uh in that meeting. I couldn't tell you the exact number. Um but that is that is kind of the the challenge. And it it's doesn't it happens in many other areas of the system as well. Um whether state funding, um you know, the way that we get funding from the Department of Agriculture for for uh food service. I mean, there are lots and lot of that I mean, hundreds if not probably over thousands of people that are tied to grants that we have no control over the source. Um but if we don't access them in in in uh consume them, then they aren't going to be there in the same way. >> Yeah, I I I get that part.
086My concern is one is I think the dis- delay is likely. So, it's not an if, it's [snorts] you know, when. And then two is to Trustee Foster's, you know, I I think the heart of the question is how do we float that when that happens? If it's a month, if If 2 months, I mean, they're going to have to flip the whole billing system. It's going to have to switch to HHS like the accounting and tracking and all of that. Um you know, and in line with that, some of the positions we're moving are diagnosticians. And we're also reducing the the number of duty days for the right diagnosticians. Uh correct? So, you know, the other element of that change is OCR going to the Department of Justice with the expectation that Department of
087Justice is going to be much more vigilant about looking at OCR violations. And so, there's kind of a a double jeopardy there uh particularly around the evaluations, the diagnostics. Aside from the fact that we want to be on time is, you know, that those kind of overlap. And so, I understand the reality for the budget changes. And as some people had said, you know, some of the comments earlier, we can do amendments and and look at how we're progressing, you know, month to month uh you know, from the budgeting calendar. But specifically, like how are we going to weather any of these bumps? Because if diagnosticians aren't getting paid and they're not working for a month, you know, the backlog would would I mean, be pretty quick to accumulate. >> Yeah, I mean, that's [clears
088throat] that's true for Unfortunately, that's true for lots of different groups. Um you know, we have to there's only so far we could go as far as floating, you know, and the last time we did this, we I think 6 weeks was about as far as we could go. Um we were able to extend to some to to 6 months. Um you know, we we are very clear that if you're working, you're going to get paid. And we should we want we want people to get paid. We want we want we need them to continue to work to do exactly what you said. So, we don't have evaluations beginning to to backlog. Um you know, that's a function of cash on hand. That's a function of acquiring lines of credit if you need it. Uh
089the reality of that happens like every single district in the state of Texas and probably the country. I mean, it is not going to be localized to us. I mean, everybody is going to be reeling. Um you know, I know it's not the the answer you want to hear that it's like but it's it's one that we would manage with cash, with um you know, lending if they had to if we had to continue to to do it that way. >> Yeah, and and perhaps I I should reframe this. I mean, this news just came out the other day. You know, I have been kind of mentioning this a little bit, but I I just bring it up because of the you know, I want to really be clear on the reality of what is
090likely in the waters ahead as as you know, we're navigating forward. I expect the wake of you know, this disruption. And so, um I understand we have a limited amount of time for this budgeting process, but I do think we need to be aware of that because I mean, you know, those are going to be million-dollar swings coming at us and and this budget is cut so tight, you know, and we still have deficit in front of us. How are we going to manage when we have like a $5 million swing come our way? Um I'm not looking for an immediate answer. I'm I'm raising the question as as we go forward. >> Thank you. >> Let's have a procedural question real fast. I hate to interrupt, but we have at least 20 22 or
09123 people waiting to make in-person comments and I believe that there's a lot more discussion to be had on the budget. Is there any way that we could recess this hearing, start the general meeting, and then continue with the discussion on budget as a voting item on the on the agenda? >> Uh we'll ask our counsel. >> in doing that? >> Well, what's Can can I I mean, does it Yeah, what what's the kind of best flow of information and and discussion? >> I think first we want to know what the legal flow is. So, I think that's a legal question for our counsel first about whether we have satisfied the requirements for our hearing and could further discuss >> Yeah, you you certainly >> the consent agenda or whatever. requirements for your budget hearing
092many times over. Um I but I don't think and unless this is unless budget is posted on the regular meeting agenda like you need to have your budget discussion now cuz it's they're posted as separate meetings. So if you adjourn this budget meeting you can't come back to the budget unless it's on that agenda as well. >> Please. >> If it's on that agenda as well then you're fine. >> Vote now. >> It's a voting item. >> I don't want to disrupt the flow. >> So if it's a voting item on that on that agenda then you're posted to talk about it. You can talk about it. It's fine. You don't have to You've heard from the public on you've had your budget hearing. Yes, you can you can adjourn this and take that up.
093>> Okay. I'm >> It's just a suggestion. >> I'm going to look at our agenda to be sure. I mean I know it's there because I know we're voting on it but I just want to put eyes on it and Christine can you look at the way it is listed and >> Up there in 14.2 the very last item is the budget so it is >> It has it as an item for a separate vote. So >> Yes, so there'll be discussion. >> we're good? Yes. >> As long as as long as you're fine with that cuz you'll you'll have a whole bunch of meeting before you get to that. >> trusty Coffin I think that's a very kind suggestion for our community cuz we do have a lot of people >> But I do
094want to recognize Secretary Foster's concern on the flow. So like we're in the midst of a discussion so >> Yeah. >> I just want to put it out there. >> I'm a little I'm a little I'm a little torn cuz I I I kind of kind of want to wrap a discussion all at once. Well, not that it'll be fully resolved. But I don't know maybe we should ask for other opinions on the board and what you what the other trustees feel. >> Yeah. Trustee Singh do you have thoughts? >> I'm a little torn too. Um I think if we could I think I'm I would like to get through the discussion personally but I'm also perfectly happy if most folks want >> Do we want to give give it 30 minutes? See how we
095are? >> Yeah, just I I don't want to be at 10:00 tonight and have our >> And have our speakers, yeah. Let's go to 30 minutes, that'll be 7:00. Let's give it that and then see where we are. How about that? >> I agree with that. >> Okay. >> Let me try to to condense and wrap where, you know, cuz I had too many more things to to ask. Um, but I guess just to echo the the the the theme for me and the big question for me has to do with both for approving a budget tonight, but also looking forward is this issue of forecasting and our our capacity. Um, I want to kind of note that our proposal, cuz there's been a lot of talk about central admin, um, as there needs to
096be talk about all of of of the district and all of its operations, but the finance shop, that's like 42 folk, right? And it's compliance and it's treasury, so managing the funds. It is, uh, procurement. It is general accounting. It is a ton of different things, payroll, and kind of to trusty D'Amelio's point at some point, you have to have somebody who's really on the compliance stuff to make sure that the check that came to us is actually for the right amount because sometimes checks come in light and districts don't even notice. And they've left $800,000 on the table because the federal government or the state or whoever kind of counted badly. And so, our finance that team, y'all serve a really important and complex function. We're taking your shop down from 42 to 26
097and still having the expectation of strong forecasting and getting payroll right and doing all this, you know, these things that need to happen. So, I'm experiencing a real tension here. I'm I'm kind of like others of us. I'm reminded of days when, you know, the way we paid bills in the house was throw them up, and whichever one didn't land, that's what we were going to, you know, pay, cuz we were broke. We we're getting to a point where our capacity to do the work excellently enough to actually balance the books is is on To me, it's under threat. And and if I'm being candid, I'm feeling the threat in this very budget process. Like the fact that these numbers keep fluctuating. I don't I I offer It's not even grace in this. I feel
098like we're our system is overwhelmed with the complexity of what's going on, and it's it's challenging us. So, I don't understand how we're not going to be even more challenged in our capacity to get the budgeting strong and right and forecast well going into the future. Um, especially with your shop going down by whatever the math is. That's like a third or something like that. So, um, I don't know if I can frame that as a question. Uh, just something for us to to take note of that the level of specificity and detail work that's required of your shop is is high as we're cutting back on your shop. >> Uh, any thoughts? Except for to say yeah. >> [laughter] >> I don't know. >> I think I appreciate um, that Trustee Foster. I think
099what you have elaborated is or what you've expressed is true, but that's also true for my peers as well. >> Mhm. >> Right? Um, so, I appreciate highlighting that finance is shrinking. I think when I got here it was 100 people, and so we are definitely reducing year over year over year, right? And it does impact the work, but that is also the same for my peers that are sitting out here beside me. >> Well, and it's the same on our campuses. >> Yes. >> You know, we have teachers and folks desperately wanting to deliver to our kids, and we're taking away pieces that help make that possible. >> Yes. >> So, this is something that's felt literally everywhere in the organization. Um I will I do have another question, but I will stop there.
100Um and I appreciate Trustee Hunter and Trustee Garay Osti kind of rounding out the the conversation as we move forward. >> Thank you. Um who wants to go next? Trustee Singh, do you have anything? >> Um I can if anybody else wants to go. >> Okay. Trustee Quintana, Trustee Kaufman. >> Um okay, I I can go. Um So, I'm sorry. This is obviously a lot, and I thank you for your work and your commitment to doing these hard things. Um I I guess I'm just wondering um if there is a difference in this budget around which schools will be affected um by essential area cuts. Are we Are we we're adding schools? >> Uh that's correct, um Trustee Quintana. Um for essential areas, um when we looked at uh the need to increase the reductions,
101um what we explored were things that were already underway and expanding them further opposed to introducing something new. That was going to be you know, impact staff. And so, um previously for essential areas, we had limited it to band four only. Um now, what we've said is we're going to expand it to band three. And just for for those following along, bands are a way that we in Austin ISD kind of group schools with different needs. Uh we based on a support and resource index. So, band one, highest need, band two, band three, band four. Um so, yes, it would be uh expanding that. And on slide nine, uh you can see kind of what that overall impact is. >> Okay. Um cuz I know that we still have, you know, a lot of schools
102in band three that serve a lot of title one students. And so, I'm just wondering if that was taken into consideration at all or how we would address that. >> Uh so, based on organization, um one of the fundamental one of the foundational data points in this in the sequencing of the bands is students identified as economically disadvantaged. Um that that's just how it's organized. So, SRI band one, um you're going to likely have schools that have very high percentages of students identified as economically disadvantaged and high percentage of students who receive special education services. And it goes down from there. So, three, um compared to two and one, would I can't say campus by campus, but generally speaking as a group would have fewer students as a percent of that are identified um as
103um economically disadvantaged. One of the things that I did hear from principals today, uh was to um and I haven't had a chance to to get into this yet, was if there might be some consideration for schools that are on a lip, um which is, you know, there's a lip, a tap, a tip. Lips are um tied to AISD. We don't submit them to the state. But just kind of going back one more time and saying, "Okay, are there campuses that are in a turnaround process?" They may not be a tap. They may not have that many unacceptable accountability ratings. But should there be some consideration? And I told the principals that I would definitely look at that. Um this number is of the whole. But I think there's room for some adjustment. But I
104wouldn't do it just based on students identified as economically disadvantaged because they're ranked that way. Um so they're all going to be kind of the same, kind of moving towards band two, which will be greater. That makes that's helpful. Um so the answer is, yes, we can look at that. Um is it going to move the number? You know, right now it's it's 1. You know what? Um 344, 1.44 million. There may be some adjustment there. Um but I'm happy to go back and and see if there's, you know, I don't know if that impacts the budget here, you know, per se, but um I I have committed to the principals that I would go back through and see if there's any that are on lips or taps that need additional consideration. >> Thank you.
105Um and then were we able to do any sort of creative problem-solving around CIS? >> Um creative problem-solving, we've been in contact with CIS, Dr. Marianne Maxwell, who's in the audience. Um had conversations today with their leadership team. Uh to be clear, Communities in Schools isn't vacating Austin ISD. There are still going to be dozens of schools um that are supported. Right now the conversations are around um are there adjustments in kind of what we pay versus the given the number of students in each school? It's kind of based on the flat line, kind of you know, rate. Um we've been engaged with them for weeks now. Um I don't know Dr. Marianne Maxwell if you'd like to weigh in on that, but uh creative solution as far as making up the whole, um there
106there isn't a way for us to find the funds unless I take it from somewhere else to to make it fully whole, but I can tell you we're trying to make every dollar that's remaining get stretched as far as we possibly can. My understanding, I don't want to misspeak, but that we're probably still going to be over 30 schools. I don't know what the number is final, but I think we were at 51 before. Um so go ahead, sorry Dr. Maxwell, I don't want to steal your >> We were at 55 campuses. >> 55. >> Um and so we're looking at least 30, and then we're looking at um alternative funding sources to be able to um try to stretch those dollars even more to supplement what the district can pay. Um and then just
107again, working with them. We've had several meetings a week the last um couple of weeks just to um try and identify campuses and work with campuses as well and and try to find the funding that would would allow us to stretch those dollars as much as possible to serve as many schools as possible. >> And to be clear, Dr. Maxwell, you're you're meeting not campus you're meeting with the leadership team at CIS. >> Yes. >> Just to be cuz I know there's been conversations of just only really clear like we are coordinated with them on this. >> Yes. Um I appreciate that. I mean, I know that there's a lot of moving parts in this, but I would expect that, you know, if a school who relies heavily on CIS might be getting some sort
108of deduction or decrease in in their resources, that hopefully we we might think, you know, how to pivot creatively to partnerships or like you said, looking I mean, God bless you for stretch for stretching the numbers. I wouldn't even Yeah, that's I know it's it's hard work, but um I guess I just wanted to make sure that that we are just still thinking about the student who um who depend on a lot of different things in our district, but you know, this specifically um that they're still, you know, that they're not going to be lost in the cracks, I guess, is what I'm trying to say. Um, I think that's it for now for me. >> Thank you, Dr. Maxwell. >> Thank you. Trustee Goffney, anything? >> Just a a few. Um, thank you for
109pointing out during the presentation around finding places, employment for people who are displaced by this. I think it's really important um to highlight that, that you're for many of our employees, most of I mean, all of the certified and and many of the not certified that you're finding a place where they're not unemployed or losing their opportunity to earn an income in Austin. Um, I know it's not the same when you're displaced from one position to another, from one school to another, but it's it's better than that we're doing a mass riff with cutting hundreds of people. So, thank you for highlighting that. Uh, I just have a few detail questions, um, but first I just have an overall question about all the documents that were added subsequently, um, to when the budget was originally
110posted. Many of those attachments 5 through 14 are the same that are in attachment 4, the the overall presentation or budget. Are those attachments revisions to what's in attachment 4, or are those just pulling it out so it's a separate document? >> Yeah, I I I understand there were revisions as far as um kind of like when we do the general agenda item, if something changes meaningfully, then we'll add a revision. Um, I'm not sure if it's listed that way, but they are revisions. >> So, I guess it I don't think it's listed that way, and I it's I guess I'm very I was perplexed today on how to handle this, because I actually prepared for this, which I don't always successfully do, and then I arrive at, you know, 5:45 for a grievance hearing
111and come in for this or 4:45 from work leaving work and then I come here and find on the dais 10 more bud items that I didn't know because they were notified of in an email shortly after noon, but I don't check my email when I'm at my other job or driving here or at a hearing. So, anyhow, I try to make sense of how do I make sense of that then because I don't know what's different about all those hundreds of pages than the hundreds of pages I already looked at. >> I I'll have to go back and look at the attachments. Most of the attachments were supposed to be updated because of the adjustment of the 20 20 million dollars so that we could show the difference between what we originally um um
112what the recommended budget was versus the um proposed budget. But as soon as I get back to my seat, I'll go back and make sure we were they were we were trying to say like this is attachment one and then as of maybe June 11th and this is the same thing attachment one as of June 18th. So, I'll go back and make sure >> any way any of the is just the 20 million adjustments then that would be helpful just to know that. But I also received, you know, we we received many emails from people who and there's a lot of social media buzz from people who scoured these documents. And so, helping everyone to understand kind of what's different would be would be helpful for the engaged party. >> Yes. Quick thing. So, um
113you mentioned I think attachment four which is like the big budget document. That one I think is from last week cuz it still shows the 15.1% fund balance. And I think you and I talked earlier today saying that that would be updated after the budget is adopted. Okay, so so attachment four is slightly outdated, but I think the other attachments the dates are pretty, you know, reliable. And if it doesn't have a date, um I think that's the latest and greatest. >> Okay. But again, with hundreds of pages it's hard to figure out what's different. So, if there's some way of knowing what's different, that would be helpful. Um specifically on attachment 11, the separate document, I was able to go through that sitting up here. Um I just have a few specific questions on
114that, so uh on attachments 11, it shows that changes at different departments and schools and in terms of employment. And it shows that Dobie, Webb, and Burnet drops of 20, 23, and 18.25 staff members, 27%, 31%, and 20% or 20 Am I getting that right? Um something percent. What does that mean in terms of support for Dobie, Webb, and Burnet as we transition into this next period of a little uncertainty of what's coming next week as we're transferring ownership or management to TCIS? What does that mean that those numbers of support for our schools that are most in need of support are are dropping? Help me understand what's happening with that. >> Yeah, so um just to be clear, the it's changed from allocation to allocation, fiscal year to fiscal year. So um the student
115populations of those schools is different um than it was when we started last year, right? So the budget it I don't I don't want a trust you trustee um Kaufman to assume that all those allocations were have been implemented and used throughout the entire year because >> I'm not assuming, I just want to understand it. [clears throat] >> Yeah, so so we've um updated uh the allocations uh based on uh our enrollment uh projections for these campuses. We've had conversations with our partner staffing partner to make them aware of what these are. Um we have um I'm trying to think if there was anything else cuz we we also just so our trustees are aware, whenever there's a turnaround plan, um we held multiple things harmless. Um so I'm I'm I'm not even sure that
116this is actually what it would be if we would have implemented the full methodology. >> Okay. >> Um I can break it down and and show kind of what the difference is, because there have been adjustments um based on what those schools were afforded due to the turnaround plans. >> Okay. >> But we have been working with uh the partner um through this process. >> Okay. So, those drops don't necessarily mean there's a de- dis- divestment of support for the schools. >> Um well, I mean, Do you want >> Yeah, so we [clears throat] uh adjusted their staffing commensurate with every other middle school uh that are in the same position. Uh but they can buy positions back up to their 1882 summary of finance amount. And we're working on that right now. >> Okay.
117So, the those may not be the end of staffing numbers once the partner Yes. Combine the combine the mix. Okay. Thank you. Um also on attachment 11, there's um you know, I took two campuses from District 7 that have very similar num- you know, population of students, and one is dropping from 78 students to se- or 78 staff or teachers or something, staff members, to 76 staff members. The other from 81.5 to a 71. So, one has a 62.6% and the other a 12.9% drop. What What are some of the variables that might explain why two comparably comparable sized and comparable socioeconomic status schools would have such different drops? >> Um Yeah, so you I mean, I don't know if you want to talk about the schools. >> I'd name them, too. >> So, well,
118I mean, so, we stopped the language. Um that's something that that I don't know the campuses. Um >> Mills and Bear Creek. >> All right, let me I can pull them up. Uh so, >> Just cuz I understand the changes, cuz I just want to help understand what is other than like just percentages or >> of students in each grade level. >> is driving some of those changes other than specific position cuts that are basically the same at each school. >> Yeah, when it comes to teachers, um the the teacher ratios were set based on what we shared with our trustees earlier in in the semester, sorry, in the semester just a couple months ago and are implemented. So, I don't recall if one is a band four school, one's a band I need to
119think through which which band they're in. Cuz we we did modify our ratios if you recall trustee Kaufman where we didn't implement all the way to band one or we protect the top schools. So, I'd have to look and see what band they fall in. That's one thing. So, that way you would see variation between similar size schools if they were in different bands. If they're likely in band one or two, then you would see a change. If it's band four, then that's where you had previously implemented central areas. So, that would be a change. Language also, I'd have to break it down, but there are lots of things that would drive kind of the teacher allocations, but they're all driven by enrollment numbers. We don't make adjustments unilaterally. They're they're all just kind of
120driven by those numbers. But if you if you if you want me to, I can break it down. >> Can we just answer on the updated bands for this coming year? What where do Mills and Barronoff sit? >> I don't We haven't up We typically update the bands in the summer once we get updated enrollment. >> are these budgets were based on? I thought they were both four. >> Thank you. So, we did have a meeting just today about the bands and so that information is being calculated it right now. So, these current staffing allocations are based upon the 25-26 bands. >> Okay. So, I have that list somewhere, but I I thought they were both four, but I would have to double check that. >> Clayton could be you said Clayton Mills? >> Mills
121and Barronoff. >> Oh, yeah. Barronoff could be three. Mills almost certainly is four. But I I'll I'll I'll definitely I'll look at it. >> Yeah, we'll double check it. >> Okay, and then I'll skip most of the other questions, but on attachment six, where it's part of the comparison from year to year is the student to teacher ratio. And I was curious how the student to teacher ratio is counted because we're we're talking about claim changing average, you know, class sizes caps to 24 at an elementary school, but the student teacher ratios are around, you know, 12 and 11 and 14 and 12. So, I understand it's not you know, the student teacher ratio doesn't reflect one-to-one what the typical home room classroom size is. But, I'm just wanted to clarify what's the methodology for
122calculating those student to teacher ratios because they are so much lower than what the classroom size cap is. And they're also, honestly, the ones on this list are lower than what's on the taper reports also. So, it seems like a different calculation than what TEA is using perhaps, unless we've done a lot of cuts since the 24-25 taper. >> Yeah, and and so >> I mean, I can give an example real fast that, for example, on the 2024-25, right? That's where we're at on the tapers now, right? The most recent are 24-25. >> Yep. >> So, on that taper, there's a school that has 15.9 as the student teacher ratio, but this data shows for 25-26 that it was 11.5. So, four students less on the ratio. I don't think we've cut that much from
123a campus since last year. So, it's what I want to understand what the methodology is for those numbers. Just to help understand. >> And I think Trustee Kaufman, that may have to do with the timing of the report. So, some of that information is provided to on snapshot, which is last day in October and Friday in October, and then some of the reporting may have been at another time during the year where that ratio was much lower. So, it could have some something to do with the snapshot. >> Like, when you think teacher Students is easy. There's how many students are in the school. Teachers, is that who's included in the teacher count for that? Obviously, more than just home room teachers. >> Correct. >> Like, is that just the total number of people who
124are sort of in certified teacher positions on the campus? >> So it could have to do with some of the special programs for instance special education bilingual services those type of of programs as well. So when you look at the staffing ratios again one of the the issues with staffing is that where do you add a teacher and at what point do you add a teacher and so is that a 22 is that a 23 is that a 26 so that will drive some of those variables and variations that you might see in the report and especially between two different campuses as well. >> I can give you the breakdown of which ones are in the numerator right which is the teachers >> The sort of like who is qualified who who is used to
125identify a certified certified teacher. >> Yeah. >> Some cases we classify you know Yeah. >> Great. All right. I will forego my other questions. Thank you all. >> Thank you. Can I just ask a related question to this one? Thanks for being here. While we have that going through that campus by campus there is a a major outlier in my district and I'm trying to figure out if it's a mistake or not. Barton Hills when you look at the student teacher ratio in the document in the campus by campus document Barton Hills has a ratio of 20.88 students per teacher the next highest ratio for elementary is 15.26 and the document shows Barton Hills going down from 18.5 elementary teachers to 8.5 for a campus with 285 students. And I'm wondering if that may be
126mistaken because that just seems very out of gamut with everything else and it's not going to keep me from voting for the budget but I do want to ask that we get an understanding of whether that's accurate or not because it just seems like a major major outlier. >> Yes, we will President Botello. >> Okay. Thank you. I'd love an update about that when you figure it out. Thank you so much. Okay. Um Trustee do you have We have 4 minutes till our promised 30 minutes. >> of the trustees that hasn't spoken yet. >> Okay. >> I'll do the the same. >> No, go. Yeah. >> But you never speak. >> Okay. Trustee Hunter. >> You have the best question. >> Best presentation. >> Okay. You have the best presentation. >> Can you take a
127minute? You're going to tell me these questions are right. Okay. Okay, that's good. Write it down, Given. >> Okay. Um quickly, uh on the technically when I look at the budget, it is balanced, but only because of this number of 68 million 51,000 and it's identified um as a one-time financing source, but I can't like it doesn't say what the source is and we said that the four properties or maybe five properties that were 60 million TBD TBD were not in here. So, I'm trying to figure out what this basically I'm going to round up 60.1 million dollars is. >> Where are you seeing what where you Trustee Hunter? >> Um I don't have a line cuz I pulled it out. I wrote the question down for you, but um it says it's on do
128we what it says 7900/7000? Source of that's what I wrote. I'm so sorry that I don't have the thing in front of me, but it just says other funding source. Let me go back up real quick. Go up all the way to the top. Okay. Um 60.051 million in a one-time financing source and a in attachment four. >> And that's that includes which one? Far right. >> Here right there. >> Oh. That's 60 60 million 51,000. >> Mhm. That's what I said. >> Oh. [laughter] >> That's what I said. >> Yeah, sorry. I thought you said 67 I thought you said it's a different number. I thought you said 68 million. You said 68 million I I think I I thought that's what I heard. Sorry. That's That's why that would have been off by
1298 million. >> 60,051 million identified as one-time financing source. I just want to know what what is that source? >> 60 60 million is a property monetization. How are we going to use that? >> Okay, that's time. I I will ask in the next part more thoroughly about that, but um the play money like enrollment at 68 329, this very vote tonight going to change that number. I don't know how by how much, but I just we can't bank on things that are I know we have to make some assumptions, but I feel like some of this stuff is ethereal. Like it's good if it happens, but like I where can I cash that, right? >> So um Trustee Hunter uh Trustee Foster had a question like this and and correct me if if if
130you heard it. Um >> I did not cuz I was being ill. >> I'm sorry. Uh I hope that's I'm sorry that's not Uh so one of the things Trustee Foster asked me was uh the real estate assumption that you're using. And I've always said and we've talked about it I think fairly consistently that we're only going to use real estate in our budget to manage disruption from one year to the next. If I took the $60 of this fiscal year, the cuts would be $60 million more and most of all of it would come out of payroll. And so the idea as we've talked about and been pretty consistent, the $60 is going to be in the budget. Um he asked whether $60 was too aggressive of a number because we obviously run into
131entitlement challenges. Sometimes the community gets activated and they want maybe something different than what is going to yield the number that's in the line item. What I shared with him was that the $60 million or $60 million 51,000 it that we have put in here is consistent with what we have been sharing with our community in the surplus meetings that have been going out all across Austin ISD. We're now in the second round, so when we tell community members that this is the expected use. Um that use with the known entitlements with the known restrictions going through an an opinion has yielded those numbers and that is still less than what we think it'll be. So I feel like we can execute the $60 million. Um I feel like we can do it within the
132fiscal year with a high probability of confidence and it'll be less than what I think we'll end up at. >> Okay. I will keep my other questions for the the next piece. I just I'm not it like why it says other funding source and that like this probably going to be buildings. Like if you hadn't have told me that I would have like that's not it's a little opaque. Remember we talked about moving from opaque to transparent. Okay, thank you. >> And Christine to clarify if we have questions we really need to do it now. >> Um if you have questions you can >> Or do you think we can postpone some of it? >> I think you can do it in the context of the voting item but at that point is you know
133Yeah, you will have time to ask more questions but >> Okay. >> Um if there's anything that's feels like it needs to happen before you're very close to voting then you should do it now. >> Okay. Um I if we may I have just a couple of things I'll try to be quick and then is everyone okay with that and then we can take a a brief break invite our other speakers in and move forward with our next with the meeting the voting meeting. We good with that? >> Um yeah, no that's fine. I'm going to have a bunch of questions too but I'll do that during the actual meeting. >> Okay, well if we're going to do that I can wait with mine as well. >> Is that okay? >> Keep it pushing. >>
134Okay, we'll keep I'll push a bit. Okay. Um [snorts] first I just want to really thank our community for sharing input. We have had so much input. Our community engages deeply. Um and and it makes us better and stronger and um this speed isn't best practice. It's not the way we want to do this. I hear that we haven't had time. I mean I think Trustee Coffin said even the Trustees, you know, were were playing catch-up a little bit today. I know the staff was playing catch-up today and and part of why we have adopted where we plan to adopt a new calendar so we don't find ourselves here again. This isn't the best way to do it. And um we can't vote on the 25th because of a newspaper posting. And if we had
135posted in time, it would have negated our first posting and made this posting irrelevant or not not acceptable anymore. So we [snorts] can't even delay a week until the 25th. We have to pass a budget by the end of the year at the month and we have to vote on a budget tonight. Um but that does mean, I know one of our callers mentioned amendments. Um that does mean we can come back and amend as we're we're working toward this. Um and I I really appreciate any input people have about cuts that have been, you know, late-breaking. Um please continue to share with us, you know, the people who are closest to the work with our students. This is all about serving our students everywhere. Um can I know you'll continue to let us know
136what you see that that we need to consider as we move forward in the year ahead. So thank you. I just want to say thank you. And I'm sorry that we're doing it this way. Um and uh I also want to just call out um on page 32 of the the big document, the big budget book. Um there's a fin- financial summary of our state allotments and it shows what we receive from the state for certain programs and what we're spending. And uh even with some increases, there's still really big gaps. And I know these are things other districts feel for school safety and security. We're receiving $5.3 million and spending 19.9. For special education services, we're receiving 77.5 and we're spending 188.7. Um we're we have big gaps in a lot of of what
137we're doing. Dyslexia allotment, we're receiving 5.7 million and spending 11.1. And so it is our job to use every dollar we have as well as we can as a board. Um but we are spending 243% of what we receive for special education in the special education allotment on those services and and that matters um a great deal. So, I just really want to flag that. Um I'd like to add to the conversation about CIS and kind of the equity. The activity buses, I think is a really important thing. And if we uh I would love to understand what the impact of those buses is on the ability of our students to stay after school for tutoring, to stay after school for athletics, to stay after school for arts activities, for extracurriculars that are are really
138not extra. Um they are part of our our educational program and they are not um always academic in the same way, but they are opportunities to get to college, to get a scholarship, to find a passion, to become part of a community. And uh if getting rid of those buses segregates those or takes those opportunities away from a lot of our students, I'd really like to understand the impact of that. So, I hope we're going to be asking about that because those late buses make participation possible for a lot of students. And I I want to be sure we hear that and really consider that. Um I do have one question about um the pending leveling and attrition. And I see that listed at $31 million. I see two specific things called out. Um 5.34
139um I believe from some campuses and a million dollars from um kind of upper level staff at central office. Or no, I think those are both central office numbers. Um and that leaves $25 million. Is that campus leveling after school starts? What does that mean? Leveling can mean many things. >> So there's there's three 31 million dollars are several things. We didn't break it out by percent because um that will fluctuate. So um leveling is one. Uh it is campus leveling. That's where it occurs. Um what what has happened I think we won't have as hopefully we won't have as much of it cuz we're really monitoring allocations before release. The one thing that isn't in our budget that you've seen in the previous budgets is a vacancy savings percent. Let's be really clear. Every
140budget that we passed in the last 5 years has had a percent of total payroll that is tied to vacancies. We do not have that in this number. 2% of a billion dollars is a big number. So in in lieu of having these percentages, what we said is this is what the actual um item is going to include uh not um not apply a percent and then kind of just um without really some intentionality. So we decided to break it up and say, "Okay, well we could expect this amount of attrition um and collapse positions given what we're forecasting over the course of the year for executive for directors and above. This is what we're going to see um outside of um the uh central administration function but within our non-campus divisions, which is the
141other number. And then lastly, where the majority of our staff is is in our campuses. Um so it'll be attrition, it'll be restructure at central office, and then leveling and vacancy savings. That Those are And those are That's a good amount of money. >> Okay. Thank you for that. I appreciate that. And then I have just a couple of comments and then I'm I'm finished with mine. Um I know that partly we're making some of these deep cuts because we've missed our adopted budget. Um and that that makes the cuts we have to make to get where we need to be to be stable and and stay keep the ability to pay our people and pay for the people who serve our students. Um we have to make deeper cuts. And so in August, I
142hope um you bring back to us a really clear plan for how we sure that doesn't happen again this year. We can't It can't happen again. We won't be able to move forward. And so I hope that's something that we you can share with us in August is is really just how we we stick to our budget. And I know you've shared a little bit about how we're going to do that, but I I a really clear plan monitoring more closely as a board on our calendars part of it. I know we've talked about potentially adding a constraint to our scorecard so we can monitor it um in in through our constraint in our scorecard process. I'd like to consider that together with my colleagues. Um and perhaps consider a constraint that we can put
143on the scorecard in August, add that to our vote. Um and add that to our board monitoring calendar. And then um my other question is I'd really like to understand if we get enrollment wrong, if we get our ADA wrong, if we get our property values wrong, um I'd like to understand what our plan is for addressing that. That if if the assumptions we've made are not don't hold, um how we get ahead of that instead of catching up to it later. So um thank you. >> So um just to provide a a quick response on the last part of that series of that can multi-prong question. Uh enrollment is is through leveling. That that's the hardest thing in the system one of the hardest things to do in the system. We know when the
144school year starts the number of students that are enrolled in on campuses. We build that up the first weeks we do automatic first after 10 days we do automatic drops, then it builds up all the way to snapshot. The challenge in AISD has been for the last 10 years has been allocating the the individual other staff person using projections and then not adjusting once the school year started. So, the biggest dollar amount out of those three components is going to be leveling. If the students aren't there, we have to level. We just have to do it. Um So, that's that's a big part of it. It's not the only thing. >> Okay. Thank you. And I think we can save some of this till August. I know we have a lot of people waiting. If
145there's something you think is important to share, um and if not, you can bring it back. Cuz I know we have a lot of people waiting. >> we definitely want to get to public >> Okay. Trustee Singh, do you want to ask now or wait till later? >> Oh, I'll wait. >> Okay. Okay. So, are we good moving on? Okay, great. Um Okay, thank you for the conversation. Uh so, at this time we'll adjourn our public hearing, take a very brief break, and then return to open our regular voting meeting. Secretary Secretary Foster, do I have a motion to adjourn? >> I move we adjourn. >> Okay, this meeting is adjourned at 7:10 p.m. and we'll be back in about 5 minutes. >> Mhm.