LEE COUNTY, Fla. — After two months of requesting information, the Lee County School District showed the math for its plans to cut nearly $16 million from its budget.
The Lee County School District announced in late March that it plans to save $15.9 million by making a 5% cut to every department in the district.
School Board Member Debbie Jordan says she was the only person on the board to ask how the district arrived at those numbers.
"Haven't seen the breakdown of what that actually looks like per department," Jordan said.
Fox 4 submitted a records request on April 10 asking the district for that breakdown. After months of emails and calls to the district, Fox 4's legal team sent a letter last week stating the two-month delay for the public records violated state law.
On Monday, the school district finally provided a letter breaking down the math behind the eliminated jobs and resulting savings.
Read what the Lee County School District shared below:
The document states Superintendent Denise Carlin wants to reduce the district's "top heavy bureaucracy" and invest that money into the classroom.
The breakdown reveals several cost-cutting measures including:
- A reduction in school bus purchases
- Delayed technology upgrades
- Elimination of 28 unfilled bus driver positions
- Elimination of five unfilled social worker positions
"If we are stating that we have this money, we should know where that money is coming from. We should've already known where it's coming from so for to take this long was an issue for me," Jordan said.
Watch Lee County Community Correspondent Ella Rhoades report below:
While the district provided an extensive list showing how it achieved 5% cuts from each department's budget, Jordan says she still has unanswered questions.
"Let me know why. What is the why?" Jordan said.
India Palencia, who has three children in the school district, shares similar concerns.
"Feel they were very quick to put out that they had found the savings and where they found them. I don't see why they're not so quick to put out how and the proof behind them," Palencia said.
Fox 4 asked the district on Monday why that specific 5% reduction target was chosen, but a spokesperson has not responded.
The school district stated in March that the cuts won't affect school-based teachers or support staff, but Palencia believes students will ultimately feel the impact.
"If people knew that it was cut from programs and waste that we didn't need, a lot of people would have a lot more faith and trust in our school district, but it isn't provided to the public. It's left to the public to start wondering where did it go and how," Palencia said.
While the school district hasn't specified exactly how it will use all the saved money, the documents received Monday show plans to reinvest more than $20 million from administration cuts into classroom support.
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