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Dear Saint Paul Public Schools Community,

Saint Paul Public Schools (SPPS) leaders and staff across the district have been meeting regularly since last summer to create a budget for the next fiscal year (FY25) that is equitable, balanced and reflects our community’s values. Throughout last spring and fall, SPPS conducted extensive community engagement to learn what our students, families, staff and community members value most. These values, as well as data around student outcomes and requirements for how we must spend our money as a school district, have guided our decisions about next year’s budget. 
 

Budget Building Blocks 

Throughout the budgeting process, we have used the budget building blocks (pictured above) to represent how SPPS builds the budget. Each block represents the major components of our budget, and the budget is built from the ground up.

The four budget building blocks are:

1. School Needs: Staff that every school needs, such as a principal, teachers, custodian, health staff, counselor, social worker, clerk, nutrition services, educational assistants, teaching assistants, etc. 
2. Requirements: Required services and staff, including the Superintendent, Board of Education, special education and English learner services, and other contractual and legal obligations that dictate what services and staff the district is required to provide
3. Community Values & Instructional Priority: Budget priorities identified through community engagement with over 10,700 participants. Programs and services that have been proven to support one or more of the priorities listed below were prioritized in budget decisions:
   1. Respectful and reflective schools
   2. Safety and sense of belonging
   3. Literacy
4. Essential Services: Necessary support for school and district operations, such as transportation, utilities, payroll, purchasing, insurance, technology, etc.

School Budgets

SPPS schools received their budgets in mid-March. Since then, principals have been meeting with staff and will be hosting school-based budget meetings with families to share information about their budgets with their communities. A sample of changes to schools and programs was shared in the April 4 budget update.

After-School Programs

It is important to note that after-school programs and extracurriculars are not part of the school budget allocations. Each school has the flexibility to determine what after-school programs and extracurricular activities they can offer based on available funds. SPPS is also working with the City of Saint Paul on after-school opportunities for the 2024-25 school year. Below is a high-level summary of after-school programs for next year; more information will be shared by each school.
 

Grade Level	SY24-25 After-School Programs and Extracurriculars
Elementary School	Extended Day Learning (EDL), school-based clubs and activities, Discovery Club, Community Education courses
Middle School	Extended Day Learning (EDL), Flipside (5 schools), athletics, school-based clubs and activities
High School	School-based clubs and activities, athletics including the addition of men’s volleyball in spring 2025

Department Budgets

SPPS central office departments received their budgets this week for the next fiscal year. On average, these departments’ budgets will decrease by 13%-30%, with some departments reducing by 50% or more. These reductions include American Rescue Plan (ARP) cuts and additional cuts beyond ARP.

Below is a summary of the department budget reductions by division.
 

Department or Division	FY24 Budget Millions (M)	FY25 Budget Millions (M)	Percent Change (%)
Administration & Operations	$158.4M	$120.7M	-23.8%
Schools & Learning* *does not include school-based positions	$40.8M	$35.3M	-13.5%
Equity, Strategy and Innovation	$26.9M	$23.4M	-13.0%
Human Resources	$14.0M	$12.1M	-13.6%
Business & Finance	$7.6M	$5.3M	-30.3%
Board of Education, Superintendent, Legal and Legislative Affairs	$1.98M	$1.97M	-0.5%
Districtwide Expenses (employee benefits, liability insurance, etc.)	$32.6M	$30.6M	-6.3%
All Divisions/Districtwide Expenses	$282.3M	$229.3M	-18.8%

Budget Outlook and Next Steps

At this time, SPPS has $28.9 million left to reduce to reach a balanced budget for fiscal year 2025 (FY25). The district may consider using some of its fund balance to prevent further reductions for FY25. The FY25 budget has to be approved by the Board of Education in June.

Budget Reduction Target for Fiscal Year 2025 (Running Total as of April 22, 2024)

Summary of Budget Reductions/Savings	Budget Impact	Shortfall Running Total	Date
Estimated FY25 Budget Shortfall	-	-$150.3M	Fall 2023
FY24: New revenue, unemployment insurance savings FY25: ARP one-time expenses, additional state aid, additional compensatory aid	$42.8M	-$107.5M	January 2024
Discontinuation/reduction of ARP and non-ARP funded programs and staff, supplemental pay savings, school allocation savings	$71.3M	-$36.2M	Feb/March 2024
Additional reductions in district staff and services	$7.3M	-$28.9M	April 2024

Please refer to previous FY25 budget updates for more information about programs previously identified to continue or stop next year. You can also review the April 23 Board of Education presentation and audio recording for more detail and discussion.

School Budget Information Meetings

School budget meetings are continuing to take place in April and May. These meetings are designed to inform members of each school community about their school’s budget and staffing changes for next year. To attend a meeting, families should watch for information from their school. 

We will continue to keep you up to date on the FY25 budget via email, on the FY25 budget website and through Board of Education meetings. You can also use the FY25 Budget Feedback form to submit comments or questions that may be added to the FAQ on this website.