The Budget Advisory Committee is one of several standing district committees made up of parents/guardians and staff, including labor organization representatives. The parent/guardian members are volunteers who attended the selection meeting in the fall and were selected by fellow parents/guardians in attendance at that meeting. They meet several times a year to learn about and review budget-related content. Their budget priorities for 2024-25 included: 

• Prioritized mental health supports and individual learning supports above other items
• Extra-curricular activities are important, but different perspectives about funding those and which ones (ex: more inclusive activities could be prioritized over more competitive activities, or the cost could be offset by families or community partners)
• Recommendations included going more digital, considering school-specific needs, and building stronger community relationships to help support supervision and activities at schools  

One way the district gathered budget-related thoughts and values from people was through an online survey, which allowed participants to prioritize 9 categories and share ideas additional ways to reduce spending. Students, staff, families and community members were invited to participate from Feb. 1-11, and it was available in many languages. 

You can see the survey results below. The top priorities for most groups were individual supports for students, mental and behavioral support and curriculum. The comments were left out as some were personal in nature, but all comments were reviewed by staff.

• All survey responses
• Community survey responses
• Family survey responses
• Student survey responses
• Staff survey responses

Notes about this year's budget reductions: 

• Some families saw little to no budget reduction impacts to their students this year, especially those with elementary students.
• Some believed certain outcomes were a result of budget reductions when they were caused by something else (misinformation). Example: a class or club not being offered, but instead it was due to scheduling, lack of student interest, etc. 
• Some noticed larger class sizes in older students’ classes.

Notes about next year’s budget priorities: 

• Many mentioned that social emotional supports for students should be a priority and noted the importance of counselors and behavior support positions.
• Many mentioned that individual supports for students who need it should be a priority.
• Several people mentioned keeping student athletics, arts, and extra-curricular activities.
• Several mentioned the importance of multilingual supports and services.
• Some felt class sizes should be kept low while others felt the sizes were reasonable.

The Key Communicator group is made up of parents and guardians from each school and included the family engagement liaisons. They meet monthly to learn about the district and offer input and ask questions. Their input about the budget included: 

• Prioritized mental health supports and individual learning supports above other items
• Extra-curricular activities are important, but different perspectives about funding those and which ones (ex: more inclusive activities could be prioritized over more competitive activities, or the cost could be offset by families or community partners)
• Recommendations included going more digital, considering school-specific needs, and building stronger community relationships to help support supervision and activities at schools  

The Superintendent's Student Cabinet includes representatives from each middle and high school in the district. As they discussed the budget situation, the themes that arose included: 

• Students who were involved in athletics rated that higher and mental health supports near the bottom.
• Students who were not involved in athletics rated mental health supports higher.
• Maintenance of schools is important for school pride.