Dear OHPS Community,
School districts across the State of Washington, including Oak Harbor Public Schools, are facing budget reductions going into the 2024-2025 school year. Despite our best efforts and the successful reduction of approximately $5 million in expenditures last year, we continue to grapple with long-term budget impacts due to declining enrollment, increasing operating expenses, and insufficient state funding.
As a need to ensure long term fiscal sustainability, we are projected to reduce another $3.8 million for the 2024-2025 fiscal year. To navigate the budget challenges, we established a
Small Teams Budget Advisory Committee, which included labor partners, parents, a student, administrators, and district leadership, to provide input on our decision-making on potential reductions. Throughout the budget reduction and strategic planning process, we identified community priorities and worked diligently to focus reductions furthest from the classroom to minimize the impact on our students and their educational experience. We understand that any reduction is challenging and affects our entire community. We remain committed to providing high quality programs and services to support each and every student here in Oak Harbor.
Until legislators commit to fully funding education, particularly in areas such as Special Education and Transportation, we will inevitably continue to face tough conversations about budget reductions both now and in the future. As #OneOakHarbor, we believe in the power of our collective voice. We encourage our community to make their voices heard by holding our state legislators accountable to the state's paramount duty to provide realistic funding reflective of the true cost and value of education. After all,
“It is the paramount duty of the state to make ample provision for the education of all children residing within its borders…” —Article IX, Section 1, Washington State Constitution
Sincerely,
Michelle Kuss-Cybula, Ed.D.,
Oak Harbor Public Schools
Superintendent
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