AUSTIN, Texas — Austin Achieve Public Schools has laid off two dozen employees in an effort to save money.
The charter school system said on Feb. 2, it cut 24 jobs "due to projected financial shortfalls" resulting from lower than expected average daily attendance and other factors.
Austin Achieve said it explored all options for reducing costs with minimal impact to staffing, but the cuts were "ultimately necessary and inevitable."
The school system said it had hoped for an increase in state funding for K-12 public schools, but that didn't happen. According to Austin Achieve, state funding level have been stagnant since 2019.
Austin Achieve said district leadership worked to ensure the layoffs had minimal impact on class sizes, and most grade levels experienced no impact at all. The families of impacted classes have been notified and will be invited to a town hall in teh coming weeks.
The school system said it is also continuing to work to support staff members who are transitioning in response to the layoffs.
"Austin Achieve has a long track record of academic and operational success, and although these decisions are never easy and we realize their impact on staff and families, the changes were made to ensure the school system's stability and continued success moving forward," Austin Achieve said. "Ultimately, the main focus is on supporting scholars within our community to attain the educational and life success and opportunities they deserve and need to thrive."