Richland K-8 students may need to buy own supplies. Plus $4M more budget cuts considered
Richland School District administrators have identified more than $3.8 million in cuts to expenses it could make to the upcoming 2025-26 school year budget.
The proposal for “Phase 2” reductions was listed in the school board’s meeting materials for the Tuesday, Feb. 11, meeting.
It includes:
- Slashing staff costs by nearly $948,000
- Reorganizing professional development and schedules to save $500,000
- Making several operational and program cuts of $227,000
- Pausing curriculum and instructional materials adoption to save more than $2 million
“As we navigate the budgeting process for the 2025-26 school year, our focus remains on aligning expenditures with available resources while prioritizing student learning and operational efficiency,” reads the budget plan from Superintendent Shelley Redinger.
Richland public information officer Shawna Dinh says the district has been prioritizing reductions that have the least impact on student learning.
“None of these proposed suggestions are set in stone,” she wrote. “The board will be discussing this in greater detail at the board meeting on Feb. 11 before finalizing the list of reductions for the 2025-26 school year.”
Part of its staffing adjustments include reductions of “administrative assistants and support staff as appropriate,” but the details of how that would be implemented are unclear right now.
The plan also calls for the elimination of K-8 school supply budgets.
“If approved by the school board, we would be asking families to purchase school supplies for their student(s), similar to what our neighboring school districts do,” Dinh wrote. “There are also several local organizations that can assist families with purchasing supplies if they are unable to do so.”
Richland schools cuts millions
Discussions of cuts for next year come as the district implemented $3 million in urgent reductions in the fall. That plan included a giant reorganization of general education paraeducators, some of whom decided to take a one-time buyout instead of new positions.
Last month, the Richland School Board approved an emergency $13.5 million advancement request on state money it receives from OSPI for enrollment to help cover its bills. The move allowed the district to reorganize its disbursement to account for four months of negative cash balance.
Richland is working to correct a financial crisis — it says is caused by rising student needs, insufficient state funding and climbing costs to operate schools — that came into focus at the beginning of this school year.
The district has overspent its budget the past two years and had to dip into reserves to make up the difference. “Actual” expenditures exceeded revenues by $6.5 million in 2022-23, and again by $1.5 million in 2023-24.
More than 14,000 students attend classes in Richland. The district also has 1,400 employees in 12 elementary schools, four middle schools, two comprehensive high schools and a number of other choice schools.
The Tri-City district is not alone, though. Public schools across Washington — from Yakima to Vancouver — have had to grapple with steep budget cuts that have impacted instruction and programs.
Pasco Superintendent Michelle Whitney recently announced they would slash large purchases, leave some vacant positions unfilled and suspend some luxuries to fill a $5.4 million hole this school year.
Plateauing K-12 investments
School administrators across Washington are coordinating a full-court press on state lawmakers this session to increase funding on some of their largest obligations and implement reforms to avert another landmark school funding lawsuit.
Funding adequate K-12 public education is enshrined in the state’s constitution as its “paramount duty.” And while school funding has increased over the years, its share as a portion of the total budget has shrunk.
In 2019, 52% of the state’s budget was committed to school funding. In 2024, that number was at 43%. Advocates also say Washington schools rank below the national average for investment as a percent of gross state product at just 3%.
Richland has a goal to rebuild its general fund reserves to a 5% balance, or roughly $12 million, by the 2027-28 school year.
With actions taken over the last couple months, it’s forecasting to end the 2024-25 school year in June with a $1.7 million balance.
Phase 2 cuts will build on those savings. In June 2026, it expects to end the 2025-26 school year with $5.5 million in reserves. But that number is dependent on several variables, including local levies passing, stable state and federal allocations and successful contract renegotiations.
Here’s a detailed look of what’s being considered in the Phase 2 plan:
Staffing Adjustments ($948,000)
- Pay freeze for superintendent and administrative salary study alignment.
- Continued position cuts through retirements and departures.
- Reduce administrative assistants and support staff as appropriate.
- Adjust staffing levels to full capacity based on enrollment.
Professional Development and Scheduling ($500,000)
- Adjust professional development days and make two district directed days optional.
Operational and Program Cost Reductions ($227,000)
- Eliminate K-8 school supply budgets.
- Discontinue printing monthly wall calendars.
- Transportation adjustments.
- Contract renegotiations with organizations such as Hazel Health remote counseling and Communities in Schools.
Curriculum and Instructional Materials ($2.1 million)
- Pause curriculum and instructional materials adoption schedule.
- Savings from Amplify CKLA and CharacterStrong payments.
This story was originally published February 11, 2025 at 12:33 PM.
