The Little Rock School District announced 60 positions will be eliminated from its central office on Friday. The district is looking for ways to cut up to $40 million a year in expenses to make up for desegregation funds it will stop receiving by 2017.
Former school board member Baker Kurris, the district's budget committee’s chair, said at a committee meeting on Monday the district's first priority is cutting administrative staff.
"Well, the priority is to start at the top. To gain credibility you need to start at the top and to streamline and make more efficient the administrative operations in the district," said Kurris.
Interim superintendent Dexter Suggs told press while cuts to teachers' health insurance benefits are on the table, the opinions of staff would be considered before any changes are made.
"Whatever path we take as a school district and as a community, we're going to take the path in which we have the least long term effect on our employees because that's critical," said Suggs.
The committee will meet again in two weeks to consider consolidating administrative buildings and other potential staff and facilities cuts. A transition away from a block schedule to a repeated daily course schedule for middle schools and high schools in academic distress.
