NWSCD21 Proposes Cutting 10 Positions; Union Says Staff are "at the breaking point"
Photo Credit: Ken Park
By Ken Park with edits by Cole Goodwin
The Dalles, OR June 5, 2024—North Wasco County School District 21 and Union leaders are still embroiled in difficult negotiations about next year's contracts. The district faces a $1.5 million to $2 million financial deficit due to a decline in enrollment.
During recent bargaining meetings D21 has proposed what they feel is the best solution to the budget shortfall: capitalizing on staff attrition to cut 10 positions without doing any layoffs.
Meanwhile, Unions say that staff are at the breaking point with 60% of staff reporting the need for work-related mental health support.
“The budget contains no layoffs, and the district proposal for changes to collective bargaining contains no layoffs,” said Director of Communications for D21, Stephanie Bowen. “We were able to avoid this by capitalizing on staff attrition (retirements and resignations) and the redistribution of staffing levels.”
Bowen noted that the district will review each vacancy on a case-by-case basis, but that they are proposing that at least 10 positions not be refilled for the 2024-2025 school year.
Other district proposals required staff to contribute $45 instead of $7.50 monthly for group health insurance. The unions rejected this proposal, insisting on maintaining the $7.50 fee.
What happened with the budget? How enrollment numbers impact the school’s budget.
The district says it began cutting daily costs last year to prepare for a $1.4 million deficit, but it didn’t expect the additional state funding cuts due to lower-than-expected school enrollment.
“We do not, and have not, taken these circumstances lightly. We started preparing for this budget last year, so the claim that we haven’t been heeding these warnings is incorrect,” said Bowen. “We reduced the budget by $1.4 million last year through attrition and not refilling certain positions as well as reductions in day-to-day operational costs in preparation for this year's deficit.”
“What we didn’t expect was the additional cut to our State School Fund that occurred in March. Unfortunately, our actual enrollment based on attendance reports declined. The shortfall of 130 students resulted in the State School Fund estimate to decline by an additional $1.4 million. This left the district with yet another unexpected cut to our budget to try to navigate,” said Bowen.
Former Chief Finance Officer Kara Flath tells a different story; she said she warned D21 about the deficit before her departure in March. Flath raised her concerns in a letter to the school board, referencing a previous meeting where she expressed her concerns about the district's financial health.
In emails sent to the district, Flath also said there was a lack of communication within the administration, noting unapproved additions to the budget. Flath’s departure was driven by these communication issues and what she described as poor treatment of staff.
"I have said for months I am extremely concerned about general fund spending, especially as it relates to enrollment. No one appeared to be concerned nor asked questions," Flath stated in her email.
"None of these additions were ever discussed or approved of," Flath added. "I rely on timely and accurate information to make financial recommendations. When I am met with flat ignoring my ‘we have no funds people’ this is the outcome.”
D21 has rebutted Flath’s claims that the district was not engaged in budget discussions.
“That was completely false,” said Dr. Carolyn Bernal, Superintendent of D21 “We regularly met and discussed these budget concerns at the cabinet and leadership levels as well as with our Unions who we meet with monthly. We took steps to course correct beginning last year but we didn’t anticipate the additional reduction of the $1.4 million in State School funding due to decreased enrollment numbers this past March.”
“The former CFO was asked multiple times to define the shortfall of the budget and to prepare an action plan for those reductions. That plan never materialized prior to her mid-year departure,” added Bernal.
Flath also said that before she left she added $700,000 back into the budget, but this amount disappeared within two months, likely due to new contracts. When questioned about the $700,000, D21 was unclear about what $700,000 Flath was referring to.
Getting into the Nitty Gritty at The Bargaining Table
Photo Credit: Ken Park
The Districts Proposal
The district is proposing to reverse changes from 2022 so that the district is again paying the required staff contribution of 6% for each eligible employee to the Individual Account Program (IAP). This change would help save the district the associated payroll costs by approximately $400,000.
The district is proposing to adopt the same salary schedule for 2024-2025 as 2021-2022, WITH the added Cost of Living increases of 7.2% plus an additional 3% or 3.5% as negotiated. (Depends on the contract.)
The district is asking that all staff enrolled in both the Moda Medical plan 5 and the group HRA to contribute $45 per month.
The district is also asking that staff members pick up their member contributions to the Oregon Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance.
The Unions Proposal
In their bargaining proposals, The District 21 Education Association and North Wasco Education Support Professionals urged D21 to provide more budget transparency and proposed a 4 percent salary increase and a 6 percent raise in retirement benefits. Unions opposed any pay cuts without a clearer understanding of the financial situation.
They also had a joint statement to share with the board.
“Firstly, we would like the board to know, as we mentioned in negotiations and to two of the board members and the rest of the bargaining team, your budget proposal left our staff feeling unsupported and greatly diminished their sense of value to the district,” said Sonia Schatz, Co-President of NWESP.
“We are consistently asked to do more with less in education, Schatz said. “While that is not exclusive to our district, its impact is long-lasting. It has been said that schools find a way to adapt; the reality is your proposal negatively impacts the staff, who find themselves tasked with making these adaptations. Their wages, healthcare, wellness, and workload will all be negatively affected.”
Photo Credit: Ken Park
Currently, teacher salaries in the district range from about $48,188 annually for new teachers with a bachelor’s degree and no experience to $96,450 for teachers with a master’s degree and over 15+ years of experience. According to D21, most teachers fall between the range of $56,260 to $88,266 in annual salary with the vast majority holding 190-day contracts.
“Thirty-eight of D21’s teachers make over $88,000 a year,” said Bowen.
Classified staff, such as Education Assistants, bus drivers, custodians, and bookkeepers, earn between $30,000 and $87,000, averaging $58,000 depending on classification and years of experience.
Union Leaders Warn Staff are at the Breaking Point: Say 60% of Staff Report Need Work-Related Mental Health Support
D21EA President Jodi Ketchum also shared the results of a staff survey on mental health.
“Close to 60 percent of our staff who reported are feeling so unwell due to their working conditions that they needed some form of mental health support,” Ketchum reported.
The results of the staff survey also revealed that 46 percent of North Wasco School District staff sought mental health care due to job stress. In addition, 48 percent are on medication for job stress, 17 percent have taken time off for mental health reasons, and 59 percent have sought holistic care.
Schatz warned that the current budget proposal could lead to staff burnout and resignations.
“We want to again remind you that we did not create this crisis and it is unfair to ask all of your lower-paid staff to work harder for less,” Schatz said. “We are not at the adapt level; we are at the breaking point. The budget you are proposing will break us one by one, and you will see far more leaves next year and far more resignations.”
Ketchum urged the district to consider cuts at the upper administrative level to avoid impacting students as severely as reductions in teaching and support staff.
“We implore you to make changes at the upper administrative level and other things that will not affect the students as heavily as fewer teachers, fewer ESPs, and no Vice Principals or Deans,” she said.
D21, for their part, wanted to make it clear that they were trying to make the best of a bad situation for their staff and the community.
“We know that our students and our staff need support. Nobody wants to be in this position. These are not reductions that we want to make or that we take lightly. Unfortunately, this is not the reality that we are currently in, but we are not unique in this. Districts across the state are in the same boat, some having to cut hundreds of positions this year,” said Bowen.
Bowen pointed to other Oregon schools such as Salem Keizer, Portland Public School, Bend Lapine and Tigard-Tualitin which have also had to make cuts. Tigard-Tualitin is currently facing $8.8 million budget cuts and will return to school with 45 teaching positions next fall.
Bowen also encouraged the community to reach out to their State legislatures and encourage them to strengthen their support of rural schools.
“Trying to make changes to public schools and school funding starts at the state and federal levels. We encourage people who are upset about the state of school funding to advocate for schools at the state and federal level,” said Bowen.
Updates as of yesterday’s, June 4th bargaining meeting: The Unions presented a package deal to the district bargaining team for consideration, which was ultimately rejected. The district asked for time to make considerations and/or possible alternatives to a counter-proposal. Another bargaining session has been set for next Wednesday, June 12th.
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