You will see lots of headline between now and the beginning of May of school districts making scary announcement of cuts in teachers, closing of schools. Not that they will do this. The purpose is to get unions and parents to protest. Every year we go through with this charade. At the end of the day, the school boards do nothing, the deficits mount, the quality of education declines and then at election time, they beg for more tax dollars to continue the scam.
“The proposals, scheduled for a vote by the PUSD Board of Education on Thursday, February 27, are comprised of 117.6 certificated positions (primarily teachers and specialists) and 34 classified staff positions.
The total proposed cuts represent a 22% decrease from 2024’s initial plan of 196 positions, last year’s proposal included a number of unfilled positions which didn’t affect actual staff members.”
This time neither the State nor the Feds are going to bail them out. Money from lots of phony programs from Washington are being cut. This time it is serious.
PUSD Could Lay Off 151 Staff Positions for 2025-26 School Year
Despite smaller reduction than initial 2024 plan, cuts appear to impact more teaching positions
Pasadena Now, 2/24/25 https://pasadenanow.com/main/pusd-proposes-151-staff-positions-cut-for-2025-26-school-year
The Pasadena Unified School District has proposed two resolutions to eliminate 151.6 full-time equivalent positions for the 2025-2026 school year, citing a drop in enrollment and the lack of funds.
The proposals, scheduled for a vote by the PUSD Board of Education on Thursday, February 27, are comprised of 117.6 certificated positions (primarily teachers and specialists) and 34 classified staff positions.
The total proposed cuts represent a 22% decrease from 2024’s initial plan of 196 positions, last year’s proposal included a number of unfilled positions which didn’t affect actual staff members.
Historical patterns suggest the final layoff numbers will likely be lower than the proposal.
According to district documentation, only 85-95 positions were ultimately eliminated in 2024 after accounting for vacancies, retirements, and internal reassignments.
“Districts over-propose to avoid missing March 15 deadlines, ensuring they retain legal flexibility,” explains one analysis of PUSD’s layoff process. The Education Code requires preliminary layoff notices to be issued by March 15, with final determinations made by May 15.
The certificated cuts target a wide range of teaching positions across all grade levels.
The largest reductions include 57.5 FTE’s for Teachers on Special Assignment (including EL Coach, Instructional Coach, RTI Wellness, and IB positions) and 23 elementary/middle school teachers with multiple subject credentials.
Additional cuts include middle and high school teachers in math (6), biology (4), English (4), Spanish (3), art (3), social science (2), as well as specialized positions.
For classified staff, the proposal would eliminate 34 positions including four instructional aide-bilingual (Mandarin) positions, three clinical social workers, two senior accountants, two utility warehouse workers, library coordinators, and various specialist and technical roles.
The resolution specifically cites “lack of work and/or lack of funds” as the justification.
The 2025 proposal differs significantly from 2024’s pattern, with certificated staff bearing a much larger proportion of the cuts. Certificated positions account for 78% of proposed 2025 cuts, compared to 58% in 2024. This shift could potentially impact class sizes, which are already above the state average at 22:1, and specialized programs like bilingual education and special education.
According to PUSD’s layoff process documentation, several mechanisms typically reduce the final number of layoffs. These include elimination of vacant positions, seniority-based “retreat rights” allowing senior staff to reclaim previous positions, “bumping” where senior employees can take roles from junior staff, and attrition through retirements and resignations.
In 2024, 90 of 196 proposed layoffs were unfilled positions, significantly reducing the impact on active employees.
California Education Code Section 44955 authorizes the district to “reduce or discontinue particular kinds of service” and outlines the process for determining which employees will be affected. The district will use seniority as the primary criterion for layoffs, with additional factors considered for employees with the same start date as detailed in Exhibit “A” of Resolution 2804. These include years of experience, number of credentials, educational units, and advanced degrees.
The resolutions also establish specific competency criteria in Exhibit “B,” defining that employees are considered competent to perform a service if they have performed it for one complete school year (at least 75% of the days) within the last ten years under the appropriate credential.
The district may deviate from strict seniority in cases where specialized training or experience is required, such as for International Baccalaureate programs, teaching positions at specific magnet schools, or dual language immersion programs.
All affected employees must receive preliminary notices by March 15, with final determinations to be made by May 15 after any hearings for employees contesting their layoff notices through the California Office of Administrative Hearings.
The layoffs come amid ongoing fiscal challenges for the district, including enrollment declines of 1,650 students since 2018 and expiring COVID relief funds (approximately $20 million annually), creating what one analysis calls a budgetary “cliff” with limited short-term solutions.
