Issue 30 -- Superintendent Shuldiner Previews Major SPS Budget Changes
Apologies it took a week to get this one written up and published, but it's a big and important article. I thought what Shuldiner presented last week was a genuinely major update on SPS budgeting, signaling *potentially* major changes to what the district funds and how it operates.
I emphasized the word "potentially" there because it's not yet entirely clear what specifically is going to change in the coming years. There's $30M in savings projected in 2027-28 and who knows exactly where that comes from (changes to the SEA contract? closing schools? something else?).
But if Shuldiner is serious about a genuine "per-pupil" funding model, sometimes known as "student-based budgeting" then the impact could be far-reaching.
It's also possible that it could cause a strong pushback. SEA is already clearly unhappy with the current staffing changes and is speaking out in large numbers at tonight's meeting.
Whatever happens in the future (months of conflict? kumbaya and happy days?), I think 1) this is a significant moment and 2) it was really good to see a no-BS budget presentation from SPS leadership for a change.