The past several weeks in Kent have been marked by frustration and outrage over a shocking announcement to terminate 127 full-time teachers. Friday late afternoon, the district announced through a statement a complete reversal to their plan. The change is due to a law just signed by Gov. Jay Inslee.
The surprising announcement to eliminate full-time positions for the 2018-19 academic year caught many in the community off-guard, bringing forth protests from teachers, students, and parents.
Acknowledging their previous decision, the district explained how they landed on the plan to eliminate the 127 positions, “Our final strategy, and the one we selected as the absolute last strategy was to address this need by implementing a reduction in force (RIF), first at the Central Administration Center, then with school-based administrators, and finally with our school-based employees."
Despite the decision to save 127 positions, the district will still be short teachers at the start of the next academic year. In the statement Friday afternoon, the district announced it will not replace 60 positions it plans to lose through natural attrition.
Christie Padilla, president of the Kent Education Association, explains the number of teachers lost through attrition is expected and consistent with numbers lost last year. Each year the district loses a number of teachers choosing to retire or find work elsewhere. But instead of replacing those teachers, the district will eliminate the positions left behind.
“It’s definitely a victory for our students, definitely a victory for our teachers,” said Padilla. “I am concerned about the long-term impact of the district’s decision to announce the layoffs. And I’m concerned about the long-term relationships between the teachers and the district, the students and the district, and the union and the district.”
The district says it was able to make up a significant portion its funding to save teacher positions from a new bill signed into law by Governor Jay Inslee earlier this week, HB 6362. Overall, state intervention will guarantee the district an addition $75 million in revenue.
The district says the elimination of 60 positions will help offset expected revenue loss over the next couple years.
At Wednesday night's planned school board meeting, community members spoke out passionately against the previously expected layoffs.
“While anticipating a RIF (reduction in force) has produced anxiety, uncertainty, and frustration with our staff, students, and community, it was based on the confirmed information about revenue we had at the time and the initiation of the RIF was aligned to negotiated contractual timelines. In the next week, principals will receive updated school staffing allocation sheets, and the staffing process will proceed as normal,” the district said.
The question still remains – what positions will remain unfilled?
KING 5 reached out to the district Friday afternoon for clarification but did not get a call back.
