Announcement Details
Announcement Message
By: Maria Su
As we head into the season of school budget development for the 2025-26 school year, I want to share some updates regarding steps we have taken and plans to continue balancing our budget.
As you may know, in order to balance our budget and ensure fiscal responsibility, we must reduce our budget by $113 million for the 2025-26 school year.
Every year, SFUSD receives money from the federal, state and local government. Funding for schools and districts is based on the numbers and characteristics of students served. However, decreased student enrollment over the years has led to a greater revenue loss, which is deepening SFUSD’s deficit.
The California Department of Education has placed greater oversight of our budget, and we must demonstrate that SFUSD can meet its financial obligations. Principals are in the preliminary stages of setting their school budgets for next year but it’s no secret that schools will have fewer resources to work with.
The leadership team in SFUSD has been working diligently to plan for these reductions in a way that will minimize the impact on students. We have already reduced central office staffing, cut back on contracts and other non-personnel costs, and are examining ways to operate more efficiently and with fewer resources. Unfortunately, because 80% of our budget goes to staffing, it is inevitable that we will have to reduce our workforce next year in order to balance our budget.
There are certain state deadlines that all school districts in California must adhere to when it comes to informing staff of possible changes to their employment, and we are no exception. The Board of Education has authorized the district to issue preliminary layoff notices to certain positions in the districts, which is a standard process for school districts up and down the state, and these preliminary notices are typically much higher than the number of actual layoffs that could occur. Our hope is that through attrition and other factors, the number of layoffs that will actually be issued later on this spring is much lower.
In March, we will submit our Second Interim Budget Report for the 2024-25 school year, which is like a check up of our finances. Having a clearer picture of our budget at this time will also be a factor in how many positions we ultimately have to reduce.
Despite these challenges, I want to assure you that our commitment to the success of every student remains unwavering. We are steadfast in maintaining our core values, which include ensuring that decisions are made with students' needs at the center and prioritizing the resources that directly support them. We are also committed to being responsible stewards of our resources, continuing our efforts to improve student outcomes while working within the constraints of our budget. Please check sfusd.edu/budget for updates, answers to Frequently Asked Questions, and more detailed budget information. Thank you for your partnership.
Maria Su is Superintendent of the San Francisco Unified School District.