Salem-Keizer schools will slash its administrative budget by $30 million in coming days, enacting salary freezes and layoffs as the district grapples with a funding shortfall it warns will likely result in more grave impacts in the spring.
Superintendent Andrea Castañeda announced Wednesday that the cuts were necessary as the district struggles with state funding that she said is utterly out of step with the true costs of running a school district.
The announcement from the state’s second-largest school district is just the latest fallout, as districts around Oregon say they don’t have enough money to pay for the services they’re required to provide. A three-week teachers strike in Portland that ended Monday was exacerbated by the district’s inability to meet educators’ demand for increased pay and other changes.
