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Phoenix Union Board Approves First Round of Job Cuts in 5–1 Vote

The reduction targets roughly 168 mostly nonteaching positions to close an enrollment-driven budget gap.

Overview

  • The district projects a $20 million shortfall next school year and about $35 million over two years after losing roughly 3,000 students since 2022.
  • The preliminary reduction-in-force list spans assistant principals of student success, art content specialists, librarians, and clinicians, with about 41 of the positions currently vacant.
  • Board member Jeremiah Cota cast the lone no vote, and President Ceysha Napa characterized the cuts as necessary to avoid closing campuses.
  • Leaders call this phase one of a multi-phase plan, with smaller rounds expected early next year and additional lists to come before the board in February.
  • Teachers, staff, and students warned that cutting student-support roles could harm campus safety and services, while district officials noted some safety leadership would remain even as one director position is eliminated.