The Kenai Peninsula Borough School District has told library aides, theater technicians and pool managers that they may not have jobs next year. The district’s current budget, last updated in May, describes elimination of all three positions districtwide, which would trigger closures of the district’s pools, theaters and some libraries.
In a Wednesday press release from the district, they write that they “recently” issued “notice of non-retention” to its library aides, theater technicians and pool managers. Those notices were issued, they write, “due to the ongoing uncertainty” in state education funding.
The district in May adopted a budget that describes closure of two schools, deep cuts to programs like Quest and distance education, reduction in teaching staff and elimination of several positions. The recent notices to pools, theaters and libraries follow previous waves of similar notifications to student success liaisons, migrant tutors, special education paraprofessionals and supply buyers, among others, the release says.
The district’s budget, calling for school closures and staff cuts including the elimination of pool managers, library aides and theater technicians, was created under the assumption that the district would see an increase in per-student funding from the state by $680 and receive funding to the maximum allowable amount from the borough.
The Alaska Legislature passed an increase of $700 in per-student funding this year, though the KPBSD Board of Education said this month that they expect Gov. Mike Dunleavy to veto some amount of that funding and also that the Legislature will not reconvene to consider an override. Dunleavy has to issue his veto by June 19.
The Kenai Peninsula Borough has stated its intention to fund KPBSD this year with around $57 million, roughly $5 million less than the district is asking for. Some members of the borough assembly have said that they support increasing their contribution to the maximum allowable amount, but a vote on that move has twice been delayed and will next be considered on June 17.
The district in its Wednesday press release says that it has told employees that it hopes to restore their positions once funding is confirmed and that the notices don’t reflect their performance or value.
“We deeply appreciate the contributions of all our staff members and fully recognize the uncertainty these notices create for our staff, families, and our communities,” says KPBSD Superintendent Clayton Holland. “It is difficult for all of us to continue to wait on a budget from the State. Our hope is that once the state budget is finalized, we will be in a position to restore many of these positions currently subject to reduction.”
The KPBSD Board of Education will hold a finance committee meeting on June 26, where they will advance a budget that they expect will have less money in it than the one that described closing pools and theaters. The Board of Education will hold a full meeting on July 7 where it will need to confirm its budget to submit to the State Department of Education and Early Development by July 15.
KPBSD Board President Zen Kelly said in April that to keep the pools open in next year’s budget would require “sacrificing the classroom.”
The Clarion has reached out to district leadership multiple times this week to inquire about the status of the district’s pools and theaters. Those requests have gone unanswered. A records request filed Tuesday had not been returned as of Wednesday evening.
Reach reporter Jake Dye at jacob.dye@peninsulaclarion.com.
