Duluth Public Schools receiving 4-million-dollar budget cut

DULUTH, Minn.– The Duluth Public School District is facing a 4-million-dollar budget cut.

Superintendent John Magas told FOX 21, it’s happening due to unfunded mandates the rising cost of health insurance, and special education “cross subsidy”.

Magas said, 85-percent of the budget goes toward salaries and benefits.

And that when it comes to deciding what to cut, he said, the kids will always remain a priority.

“When we cut year after year, it’s hard to make reductions without having impact on people. And so that’s part of where we’re coming from, but we try and make sure that we make reductions first in, you know, programming and subscriptions and things like that, but it will impact our classrooms too,” said Magas.

Magas is planning numerous public meetings, with tentative dates and locations being March 11 at Denfeld High School Cafeteria at 6 p.m., and March 16 at East High School Cafeteria at 6 p.m.

The initiative is to hear from the community firsthand regarding this situation, with a goal is to gain input on how they can make the reductions with the least impact on students and families.

“In the end, we have to find our reduction someplace, and unfortunately, that’s going to leave people potentially frustrated, but we want to make sure that people at least feel heard and that they know that we considered every option and that we really looked under every rock to consider what kind of budget reductions we can make,” said Magas.

Magas said, the school board has until June to make any final decisions.