A Brief Update on the OUSD Budget + Tonight's Board Meeting

This week is a very important one for the District and Board. On Sunday, the District released two scenarios that will cut over $100 million from the budget, and various advisory committees have scrambled to assess what they mean. The Parent and Student Advisory Committee (PSAC) met last night and passed a consensus statement to the board that we'll be presenting formally this evening. There is a lot to unpack in these scenarios and I encourage every parent to read pages 1–16 of the Superintendent's memo, explaining some specifics and outlining targets around what will be cut in a table on pages 11–12. The PSAC statement is the best response that we could come to a consensus on along such an incredibly short timeline. ## What the Scenarios Actually Mean The top line on these scenarios is that they both involve drastic cuts both centrally and at school sites, including putting school closures and mergers back on the table and a 10% cut to special education. The one major difference is that Scenario 4 involves taking out a loan to buy more time for this process to play out, which comes with additional costs to the district and possible state oversight. But both scenarios must result in finalized cost cutting details by the end of June 2026. Our District 1 Director Rachel Latta has expressed deep concerns about going into debt under the fourth scenario, and details are sparse at this point — the implications and impact of both scenarios will be explored at the meeting tonight. ## Why Your Voice Matters Tonight It is a vital time for all of us to get involved. The school board has a history of putting off difficult decisions, and this trend cannot continue. We must express the urgency to see immediate action from our board, and urge them to adopt one of these two scenarios at the meeting tonight. I will be there this evening as a lead delegate for the PSAC, representing district parents and students and reinforcing the points in the statement we drafted and passed. I will be voicing my own personal concerns about the scenarios and the Board's actions as well. I encourage you to attend virtually or in person, and comment publicly or submit an e-comment. The decisions being made tonight will be felt across the entire district, and I believe we need to stay involved and engaged, as difficult as it is.