The Gilbert Community School District plans to nix several teaching positions and other staff due to a significant budget shortfall.
The district needs to cut $800,000 from its budget ahead of the 2026-27 school year, citing dwindling enrollment and a lack of state funding.
The Gilbert School Board reviewed a savings plan during its Feb. 9 meeting, recommended by superintendent Dr. Christine Trujillo. The plan includes cutting seven positions in total − three full-time teaching positions, at least one district office position and three part-time staffers.
The board unanimously approved the plan after an hour of deliberation during its meeting on Monday, Feb. 9.
Gilbert school board member Minday Rash said they don’t like making the cuts, but it was necessary.
“This is not a want to do, this is a have to do, and it stinks,” Rash said. “We have to line up our teachers and staff to match our enrollment, and we are fat on teachers and staff right now, so we have to make some cuts.”
What are the planned cuts at Gilbert?
Trujillo’s recommendation to the board doesn’t cut a specific program but projects savings of $729,000.
Trujillo’s plan will save roughly $177,000 by cutting three full-time teaching positions.
The district will reorganize staff needs by building, and “a minimal number of employees may be asked to work in more than one building based on need,” according to school board documents.
The plan also calls for eliminating at least one position in the district office, saving an estimated $195,000.
The district plans to reduce three part-time positions and add service hours to save $61,000. The cost-savings initiative will eliminate $100,000 in AEA media services and other consulting services.
The plan accounts for an intake of $20,000, which includes State Supplemental Aid, open enrollment, and insurance. Those additional savings will get the district closer to the needed $800,000, Trujillo said.
Gilbert’s enrollment was lower than expected
Using a weighted formula, enrollment increased by only 2.5 students in the most recent academic year, according to school board documents.
Enrollment has not matched the studies the district conducted, Trujilo said.
Enrollment has consistently decreased since 2022, and it dramatically decreased by 17.1 students in 2025. Growing by fewer than three students was not enough to make up for the loss.
Enrollment is not just a Gilbert concern, Trujilo said, since 73% of districts statewide have lost enrollment.
“I had one superintendent congratulate us that went up by two (students),” Trujilo said. “That shows you where people are.”
Lack of state aid and ESA vouchers contributed to budget deficit
Supplemental State Aid funding is not keeping up with inflation, Trujilo said, which impacts the budget.
Supplemental State Aid increased by 2% while costs for electricity and other services have increased by at least 10%, according to school board documents.
The number of Gilbert students participating in the Education Savings Account (ESA) vouchers also increased to 40. The year prior had 25 students, while the 2023-34 school year had 14.
This year’s growth cost the district about $8,500 per student, totaling $340,000.
Gilbert recently invested in multiple construction projects
In 2023, Gilbert voters passed a $35 million bond referendum for a number of projects across the district. Most of the projects, which include a new elementary school, a new district office, a new high school auxiliary gymnasium, and a new entrance at the middle school, have already been completed or will be finished this year.
Board Member Anderew Ricklefs said the projects were approved because of enrollment projections, though a decline wasn’t anticipated.
Ricklefs said the board has “always probably overspent a little bit, but we always knew we were going to get the enrollment to cover it up.”
“We probably should have done a better job forecasting this,” Ricklefs said. “We didn’t and now we’ve got to fix it, and we have no options to fix it other than we need to cut some budget items.”
Celia Brocker is a government, crime, political and education reporter for the Ames Tribune. She can be reached at CBrocker@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Gilbert CSD plans to cut 7 positions in $800k budget reduction
Reporting by Celia Brocker, Ames Tribune / Ames Tribune
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
