Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) officials said Monday that the proposed budget introduced by County Executive Ike Leggett is inadequate and will result in up to 400 positions being eliminated.
In a statement, school board President Patricia O’Neill said the budget falls “short of what’s needed to provide a world-class education to a growing number of students.”
O’Neill added: “We recognize that Montgomery County continues to face fiscal challenges that make it difficult to provide sufficient resources to meet all of the needs in our community,” but that the budget proposal provides MCPS “with the minimum funding required by state law and shifts $27.2 million from an MCPS retirement trust fund to help fund our Fiscal Year 2016 Operating Budget.”
Larry Bowers, interim superintendent, said that the budget would likely require MCPS to eliminate 400 jobs, including 370 school-based positions. “These are painful cuts that will impact every school in the district, but given the county’s fiscal situation, we are left with little choice,” he said in a statement.
