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The School District of Lancaster took a major step Tuesday (March 24) toward potentially laying off more than 100 employees, as the school board voted unanimously to approve a resolution of intent to furlough 109 staff members. The move comes as the district works to close a $9.6 million budget deficit.
The vote follows weeks of public debate and a packed community meeting at Lincoln Middle School, where parents, teachers, and taxpayers — many wearing black T-shirts in support of the Lancaster Education Association (LEA) — voiced strong opposition to the proposed cuts.
According to the Lancaster Independence, the board had originally been scheduled to vote on the resolution the prior week but tabled the decision to allow more time for public comment and potential amendments to the resolution.
The district's $9.6 million deficit is largely the result of an accounting error that failed to account for the salaries and benefits of more than 80 employees during the 2024–25 school year. Additional overspending on transportation, cyber charter tuition, and building repairs contributed to the shortfall. The district ended the 2024–25 fiscal year with a $15.3 million deficit before drawing on reserves to reduce it to $9.6 million.
Superintendent Dr. Keith Miles has stressed that furloughs are not a foregone conclusion. "We want to exhaust every other avenue before furloughing staff," he said. Miles has also acknowledged the district's need to rebuild trust in its financial systems, saying, "It's become clear that we must strengthen accuracy and reliability of our financial processes."
As reported by CBS 21 News, passing the resolution does not guarantee furloughs will happen — it simply keeps that option available. Pennsylvania state law requires school boards to approve a resolution of intent to furlough at least 60 days before a budget is finalized. The district's final budget vote is scheduled for June.
The district's communications director, Adam Aurand, noted that the resolution is not solely a response to the accounting error, which he described as a one-time problem. Instead, he said it addresses a longer-term structural deficit fueled by the expiration of COVID-era relief funds, the depletion of unassigned reserves, and a steady drop in student enrollment. According to LancasterOnline, enrollment has fallen by 12% over the past eight years, while staffing levels have increased.
LEA President Christina Rojas urged the board to stay true to its stated commitment. "I'm asking the district to honor what they've been saying to keep these cuts as far away from students as possible," she said.
Board member David Parry expressed reluctance but said he would support the resolution. "I don't like the resolution, but I'm going to vote for it," he said, adding, "If we are going to lay off people who've done nothing wrong over unsound financial management, we've got to make significant changes, so it doesn't happen again."
Board member Robin Goodson echoed the sentiment that furloughs should be a last resort. "Furloughing is the last resort, not the first response," she said.
To help address the deficit, the district has already proposed several financial measures, including refinancing $5 million in debt, cutting $2.2 million in department budgets, pausing after-school tutoring programs, suspending the Winterfest community event, and shifting $1 million in expenses from the general fund to its capital reserve fund. The district also hired an independent auditor through the Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials (PASO) to review financial processes and deliver a report within 30 days.
The board retains the option to walk back any furloughs during budget deliberations before the June vote. A similar resolution was passed in April 2020, and no furloughs ultimately occurred.