CAMDEN, N.J. (KYW Newsradio) — More than 115 jobs are being cut as Camden’s City School District works to close a $91 million budget hole in the upcoming school year.
As COVID money and other grants have dried up, Camden School Superintendent Katrina McCombs said very difficult decisions were made. These cuts will impact teachers, administrators, aides, custodians and other positions throughout the district. McCombs said impacted employees are still being notified.
“We have done everything possible within our control to manage every dime we have efficiently, and this is where we’re left,” she said.
“We have to reimagine and re-envision how we are going to move forward in a way that allows us to still continue to deliver the same services and support to our students, but just in a different way.”
According to McCombs, the staffing cuts will save about $24 million a year. The budget tightening orders came from Trenton, as the district is under state control. McCombs said they are also changing the structure at Morgan Village Middle School so some students will change schools.
Enrollment dropped by about 50% since 2014. The state actually increased aid to Camden this year by $21 million, while other district changes will need to account for more than $40 million in savings next year, like cutting overtime and stopping programs run by nonprofits at schools after hours.
“Any organization will have to pay the permit fees and we can’t absorb it anymore,” she said.
“Still, the path forward requires that we align our resources with the size and needs of our district today, not the size of the district we were a decade ago.”
McCombs, who is leaving her position on July 1 for a job with the state, says her successor will start with these difficult decisions already made so they can focus on student achievement.