News Story

Dear Austin ISD Families, Staff and Community,

Last week, the Board of Trustees approved our 2026-27 budget with an $887 million operating budget, which included an amendment to preserve librarians at all schools.

The last few months have been incredibly difficult for our entire Austin ISD community. Still, our focus has been entirely on balancing our budget while ensuring our students receive what they need to be successful. Navigating a $181 million budget deficit has forced us to make decisions we wish we didn’t have to. There is no avoiding the fact that these changes hurt.

Through challenging conversations, hard decisions and restructuring districtwide, we identified $205 million in reductions for the upcoming school year.

There is no doubt that our staff and families will feel the districtwide reductions, which have taken place at the campus and central support staff level. Reductions include the following measures:

• Designated positions in Central Office staff will experience a 2% decrease in annual salary, the average equivalent to 5 duty days.
• Stipends districtwide were adjusted to ensure any stipends were tied directly to work to support students and families.
• At schools with fewer academic challenges, some teacher’s planning periods will be reduced to the state minimum (one per day), and grades 2–5 will see modest class-size increases.
• Campus support roles will also scale back based on enrollment. While every school will retain a counselor, smaller campuses may transition to part-time assistant principals.
• The district will move away from a universal 1:1 student-to-device technology model to minimize student screen time and prioritize rich, interactive instruction. Through the academic visioning process, guidelines for providing device access based on specific student needs and developmental appropriateness will be developed.
• Partner-provided student support services will be scaled back to concentrate on our highest-need campuses.
• A number of transportation changes will be implemented including:
  • Discontinued districtwide bus routes for several choice schools & the Alternative Learning Center
  • Transportation hubs for secondary schools
  • Discontinued late activity buses at secondary
  • A return to standard 2-mile policy for all schools

While these reductions directly affect more than 500 current positions in the district, district leaders have worked to support staff and keep as many people employed within the district as possible. Certified campus staff under contract were offered placements in alignment with their certification area.

As we close out the 2025-26 school year budget, we’re expecting our fund balance to sit at 10% — half of what is typically expected to help weather any unexpected costs. To begin repairing this safety net, we identified an additional $19 million in expanded reductions for the 2026–27 budget, which will bring our reserves back up to 13% by the end of the fiscal year. Our ultimate goal remains a return to a healthy 20% reserve.

While our district navigates these painful transitions, please know we are deeply committed to doing this work in a human-centered, compassionate way. None of these decisions were made lightly, and we recognize the stress and anxiety they cause our community.

Austin ISD is not alone in this struggle. School districts across Texas are feeling the severe strain of underfunded deficit budgets. As the legislative session approaches in January 2027, we are fully committed to stepping up, raising our voices and fiercely advocating for the state funding our students and staff deserve.

Thank you for your grace, your resilience and your unwavering love for public education and the children of Austin ISD.

Sincerely,

Matias Segura, PE, MBA
Superintendent