As our community turns toward the holiday season and the New Year, columns like this typically reflect on the year that is ending and the new year to come. While I would prefer to share news from the students, families, teachers and staff who make our district so strong, instead I would like to share information about financial challenges facing the district. 

At its December meeting, the Board of Education learned about several financial issues that will impact the district’s budgets this year and next. The first issue to address is closing out the district’s estimated $5.7 million shortfall, due primarily to underestimating the true cost and risk of the self-insurance plan launched in the 23/24 school year. The shortfall was further complicated by the rushed development of the 24/25 school year budget that omitted key expenditures and overestimated student enrollment. 

Some of these challenges will continue into next school year. We must account for the expenditures omitted in the 24/25 budget that are recurring. The district anticipates further student enrollment declines. And, although the district now has health insurance for employees without financial risk, costs will increase. We are currently estimating a $6 million budget deficit in the 25/26 school year.

I want you to know these challenges are not directly impacting students, classrooms, teachers and staff. Our students are receiving a high quality education, in safe and healthy schools, led by exceptional teachers and support staff.

As part of addressing these gaps, we are learning how this happened and, most importantly, how to prevent this in the future. Most immediately, the district is strengthening its internal practices to ensure timely reporting and thorough accountability checks. We are assessing the skills and capacity of the finance team and providing training and support to strengthen processes. We are deeply committed to transparency and are communicating regularly with the Board of Education and staff. 

At this point, the district will be able to address its current budget year issues without impacting students and staff. However, going into next school year, there will likely need to be multiple solutions to address the budget gap.

As we continue to make decisions on how to close the gap, we are focused on minimizing impacts to students and staff. We will continually look to the district’s Strategic Priorities, which begin and end with student achievement and wellbeing. We analyze every decision with our primary objective in mind: Students First. 

We also take into account the district’s most valuable resource: our people. We want to limit the impacts on teachers and staff, which includes prioritizing job security and rebuilding trust to sustain a thriving team. 

Over the coming months, the district will share updates and provide details about the choices that will need to be made. There will be opportunities for students, families, and the community to share their concerns so that we can understand what matters most to them while addressing the budget shortfall. 

Finally, we appreciate the support from teachers, staff, and families as the district works through this challenging situation. Our goal is to learn from these challenges and to come out of this as a stronger school district, with the staffing and systems in place to properly manage the district’s finances and rebuild confidence with our families, staff and taxpayers. 

Please have a safe and wonderful holiday season. And here’s to new beginnings in 2025. 

Dr. Anna Cole is superintendent of the Roaring Fork District Schools in Glenwood Springs, Carbondale and Basalt.