LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Jefferson County Public Schools promised to cut $44 million from central office and eliminate 300 jobs.
Now that all central office cuts and additions have been approved, data shows those targets have not been met.
Back in January, the school board approved a budget with sweeping cuts aimed at digging the district out of a massive budget hole. A large portion of those cuts targeted the central office.
At that January meeting, Superintendent Brian Yearwood said the plan included "44 million dollars in central office cuts approximately 300 central office positions eliminated."
But when it came time to show where those cuts would come from — and now that every division reorganization has been approved — the district’s own numbers tell a different story.
Before the final round of changes, JCPS said it had cut a net of 69 jobs, saving about $31 million.
"323 minus 254 is 69."
The $31 million saved includes operational and personnel cuts.
At a Feb. 13 board meeting, district spokesperson Carolyn Callahan explained how that number was calculated.
District leaders said the remaining savings would come from changes in the Exceptional Child Education division.
But that didn’t happen.
According to the district’s final approved changes, the last round adds just about a quarter of a million dollars in savings — not nearly enough to reach the $44 million goal.
At Tuesday’s board meeting, when asked about how much was cut from central office Yearwood said, "we said there was going to be about 44 million and we are very close to that as well. The process is working."
But using the district’s own data from approved reorganization plans, it’s not very close.
The total central office savings come out to just over $31 million — about $13 million short of the $44 million target.
The staffing reductions show a similar gap.
The district will not reduce central office staffing by 300 positions.
Based on WDRB’s analysis of the district’s numbers including the cuts to ECE the net change in central office jobs is 86 short of the 300 positions initially promised.
- 74 of the 86 are vacant positions that will not be filled
- 12 filled jobs are being eliminated
So while the district says it is close, its own data shows the cuts fall well short of what was outlined in January.
Now, with a $188 million budget gap still to close, JCPS expects to finalize its numbers during the May budget vote.
For now, the district’s own numbers show a clear gap between the promise and the final outcome.
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