Staffing cuts start to show up in Elyria Schools budget

Cuts made as a part of Elyria Schools' $9 million reduction plan have already produced $170,000 in cost reductions for the current fiscal year. At an Elyria Board of Education meeting on Wednesday, district Treasurer Colleen Aholt said that the district had completed its reductions to non-teacher personnel. A combination of layoffs and retirements of classified employees in March will reduce district expenses by $170,798 in the 2026 fiscal year, Aholt said. She said that those same reductions would cut $644,909 in spending that the district would have made in fiscal year 2027. This means that the March reductions will provide a total budget reduction of $815,707 through the end of the 2027 fiscal year. This number still falls well below the $9 million in total cuts the district must make based on a reduction plan approved by the board in February, but Aholt said this was because the reductions in March did not include any of the 50 teachers that the district will cut. Of those teachers, 14 have opted to retire and the remaining 36 will be laid off. The number of teachers, as well as some additional classified employees, will be reduced in April, Aholt said, meaning that the total spending cut will jump dramatically next month. While she was reading additional retirements for approval by the Board, Superintendent Ann Schloss took a moment to thank and recognize a few of those who the district was losing. Schloss lamented the loss by retirement of Northwood Schools campus utility employee Jenny Crofts. "Jenny has been with us for 21 years, and she will be missed," Schloss said. "She was always smiling. I will miss that." She also spoke about the resignation of longtime Elyria Orchestra Director Gregory Smith. "I didn't want to put him on the spot, I know it has been a very tough decision, but Greg Smith is stepping down as the orchestra director," Schloss said. "He is going to pursue other endeavors... We will miss Greg, he has been phenomenal, but I have a feeling he will stay in touch because he loves the kids here." Current Assistant Director Adam Behrendt will take over as the new orchestra director, Schloss said. Elyria's budget reduction plan came following two failed emergency operating levies in 2025, which district officials said were needed due to cuts in state funding and rising costs. State funding for Elyria, like hundreds of districts across the state, continues to fall and labor and healthcare costs are continuing to increase, so on Wednesday Aholt mentioned the possibility of a new levy to the Board. Aholt did not provide any details about what this levy would look like, instead only informing the Board members that if they wished to pursue a new money levy in November 2026, she would need them to approve the two necessary resolutions by August. Contact Owen MacMillan at (440) 329-7123 or omacmillan@chroniclet.com.