Bridgeport finance committee moves multiple staff cuts to close roughly $32–38M shortfall

The Bridgeport Board of Education Finance Committee on Monday reviewed a financial condition report that showed a large budget gap and referred multiple staff reductions to the full board as part of an effort to close it.

District finance staff told the committee the 'overall deficit is projected at $38,000,000,' and that roughly $36,500,000 in grant credits reduce the revised shortfall to about $32,000,000. The CFO said the district sought to preserve some reserve funds and proposed using $14,000,000 of the internal service (rainy day) fund rather than $26,000,000 that had previously been assumed.

The committee also moved several personnel items to the full board for consideration, including a proposal to eliminate an ITS district infrastructure operations manager (estimated savings $136,933), referral of the director of athletics and of the director of social‑emotional learning and student affairs, and a referral of the executive director/chief turnaround officer post. Committee members repeatedly pressed staff for a line‑by‑line accounting of an approximately $6,000,000 overrun in the current year’s budget and asked for projected versus actual reports at the next meeting.

"We need to advocate for more money," Chair Joseph Skowick said while urging an advocacy plan to avoid classroom cuts. Superintendent Dr. Avery and finance staff described a layered approach of operational freezes and staffing realignments; staff said they had implemented a travel and discretionary spending freeze and projected $3,500,000 in operational savings and approximately $10,300,000 in personnel realignment proposals that require board approval.

Members acknowledged the tradeoffs between back‑office savings and direct services to students. Several board members pressed to keep cuts as far from classrooms as possible and asked for clarity where grant‑funded positions could be shifted or allowed to lapse without affecting classroom services.

The committee directed staff to bring a visual progress tracker to future meetings showing cuts achieved against the committee’s stated target, and to provide a line‑item projected‑versus‑actual report on costs identified as overrun drivers.