MSD said there are multiple reasons behind that deficit. This includes the cost-of-living increases in wages for employees and an enrollment drop of 23% in elementary schools.
This spring, the legislature passed new legislation creating $30 million for summer learning in 2024. But MSD was surprised to see that none of that money will be allocated toward its summer programs.
The district was receiving a different grant after COVID that allowed it to expand its summer offerings, but it said it will have to cut some of those back. Assistant Superintendent of Operations for MSD, Brad Earl said,
“We’re just going to draw back to what we were in the pre-COVID days, where we really just focus on credit acquisition for some of our seniors who need to pick up a couple of credits to get fully graduated. And focusing on migrant education which we do get a little bit of funding for that. They’re going to be way less than what they were.”
The Medford School District said it’s looking at different ways to cut costs, like staff sizes. The district will have its first budget committee meeting May 2, where it will release its reduction plan for next year.
We reached out to the Oregon Department of Education, to learn about what qualifications are needed for the summer program funding. Detailed information about the allocations is readily accessible on their State Summer Learning Grant webpage and within their State Summer Learning Program Parameters document (pages 6-8). It says they prioritize districts based on their historically underserved students.
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