An East San Jose school district has turned to layoffs to reduce its budget shortfall, with the most recent cuts being management and administrative positions.
The Alum Rock Union School District board of trustees unanimously voted Thursday to lay off classified management staff for the 2026-27 school year. The positions include chief of communications and community engagement, coordinator of student information systems, network and systems supervisor and school link services supervisors.
A separate vote to pink slip two executive administrators was split 3-2, with Trustees Corina Herrera-Loera and Minh Nguyen voting against it. Notices have to be sent to affected employees by March 15.
These latest layoffs follow earlier cuts that may affect more than 38 employees — such as bus drivers, child nutrition assistants, wellness site specialists and liaisons — as the district works to address an $8 million budget deficit for the 2026-27 school year. That’s projected to grow to $9.5 million in the 2027-28 academic year due to a loss of grant funding.
District spokesperson Sergio Diaz Luna said the school district can’t keep all of its employees and services due to the budget deficit and declining enrollment. The board can rehire district employees up until June 30 should budget solutions be found.
“(Board members are) trying to limit the impacts to the school sites, trying to focus on the district end,” he told San José Spotlight. “There has been a lot of restructuring here and cuts at the district level. No one wants to lay anyone off. It is just one of the unfortunate things that we have to go through as a district.”
Alum Rock Union School District has faced ongoing financial struggles in recent years. Two years ago, the board voted to close six schools in the 2025-26 school year as the cash-strapped district dealt with a $20 million budget deficit. The loss of one-time federal COVID dollars and a steep drop in enrollment — from more than 10,000 students in 2015-16 to approximately 7,270 students in 2024-25 — added to the decision.
The vote to lay off administrators happened at a special board meeting at 10:45 p.m. Some board members questioned why it occurred so late at night.
“It’s confusing why there’d be a separate meeting so late,” Herrera-Loera told San José Spotlight. “To our community and our staff, who may want to have a voice, that’s disrespectful. That in itself shows lack of transparency, a lack of understanding of our community.”
Board President Linda Chavez said the late meeting was due to the March 15 deadline.
Parent Yvette Marquez wants the district to reconsider the layoffs.
“I understand the district has over an $8 million deficit at this time,” she told San José Spotlight. “Letting go of people who are … so important to the whole school community and operations has a big effect as well.”
Sharon Fontaine, Alum Rock chapter president of the California School Employees Association, which represents some of the affected employees, urged the district not to lay off administrative assistants, liaisons or wellness site specialists. She said community liaisons help students stay in school and get back on track academically.
“You say you don’t want to hit the front line, but you’re hitting the front line. Same with the wellness people,” she said at the meeting. “It’s not just their job, it’s their insurance, it’s their household. The plan is somewhere along the line to bring some of them back, but … there are schools that aren’t going to have them. You’ve cut so many (jobs) this year that hopefully we’re at the stopping point.”
Regina Cardenas, a community school site specialist, said the district can’t afford to lose workers. She said liaisons have a rapport with students, teachers, staff and parents.
“The kids rely on these resources, so do the families,” she told San José Spotlight. “To have these points of contact gone is an injustice to these kids.”
The next ARUSD board meeting is March 12 at 2930 Gay Ave. in San Jose.
Contact Lorraine Gabbert at [email protected].