On February 10, the Cranston School Committee approved the 2025-2026 school budget. Now, the budget will go to the mayor to consider the school committee’s request for funding. The proposed budget request is $189,391,236, an increase of $3,971,175, or approximately 4 percent over last year’s budget. 

Additionally, that evening, the school committee approved the layoffs of more than 20 certified personnel. That is in addition to the first group of layoffs and brings the total to 51 certified employees. A certified employee could be a teacher, social worker, reading specialist, school nurse, building administrator, or another member of our school community. These potential cuts severely impact the education provided to our families. Our classes will be large and crowded, and our teachers and administrators will be spread thin. 

Cranston Public Schools do not want to go in this direction. We want to provide a high-quality education, but this is a direct result of a combination of costly unfunded state mandates and a downward trend in fiscal support from our city. We have had to make so many budget cuts in recent years that there is nothing left to cut that does not affect our students and their educational needs.

Meanwhile, labor, supplies/equipment, healthcare, and pension costs have risen dramatically. Student needs have increased significantly since the pandemic. Facility maintenance costs continue to escalate, and our Asset Protection Fund has been nearly depleted. Inadequate funding from the city, increased expenses, and aging buildings requiring expensive repairs have created a perfect storm.

Our school budget is in crisis. There is no other way to put it. If the city underfunds or level-funds our school department again this year, we are poised to make significant cuts and changes to the education and services we provide to our tax-paying families. 

Here are some facts regarding the budget. 

Myth: "They (Cranston Public Schools) have money hidden in a secret fund." Reality: Our budget has well over 11,000-line items, organized by school, department, and items. Our budget is transparent. 

Myth: "Teachers and administrators are overpaid." Reality: Our educators could earn $10,000 more in neighboring districts like Providence or Warwick. Some teachers in nearby districts earn more than our Assistant Superintendent.

Myth: "There is too much administrative overhead." Reality: As the second-largest district in Rhode Island, we maintain fewer central administrators than many smaller districts in our state.

Myth: “This is because they give big raises to their staff.” Reality: Over 50 percent of our employees live in Cranston. All of our employees who work under collective bargaining agreements negotiate contacts with the administration and school committee. We are fully committed to providing our employees a fair wage while also being fiscally prudent. Our most recent contracts have included modest raises for our hard-working staff. They, too, need to maintain a wage that their families deserve. 

Myth: "These are just scare tactics." Reality: Every non-essential program and service is at risk. We have already notified dozens of educators that their positions are in jeopardy. 

Reality: We are the largest department in the city. Our responsibility is to educate all children, and to do so, we need a large staff and resources.

Reality: The education we deliver is world-renowned. We bring families and educators from all over the world to Cranston. We bring dignitaries from the federal government and state governments to Cranston. We are an example for the rest of the state and the rest of the country to follow. Yet here we are, poised to make devastating cuts to our budget as significant and impactful as they were just over a decade ago when we were forced to cut the “nice to haves” and only keep the “have to haves.” 

We implore our community, taxpayers, educators, and families to come together to support the Fiscal Year 2025-2026 Cranston Public Schools budget.