The Columbus Board of Education last night approved a plan to cut 61 staff positions in the upcoming school year, as part of a larger plan to head off a looming deficit triggered by reduced state funding.
The proposal presented to the board and the public in January called for eliminating 163 full-time positions, but interim superintendent John Stanford says realigning the district's promise during the last levy campaign to hire new staff - along with attrition and other cost cutting measures - means fewer staffers need to be laid off now.
More cuts are on the way, and the district plans to cut over 19 million dollars in spending by the next school year. Reductions in administrative staff will be announced at the next board meeting, and in upcoming weeks decisions will be made on cuts to programs and services.