500 signatures reached
To: Superintendent Ben Shuldiner
Educators and families against Seattle Public Schools staff cuts and increased class sizes
Tell Seattle Public Schools and Superintendent Shuldiner: We reject the 2026-2027 school funding allocations that cut staff and worsen unsustainable class and caseload sizes.
Our students deserve safe and stable learning environments at their schools.
Our students deserve safe and stable learning environments at their schools.
Seattle Public Schools is unilaterally changing school staffing and increasing class sizes right as major contract negotiations are beginning between SPS and SEA. Superintendent Shuldiner wants us to collectively tighten our belts at the expense of our high poverty schools and students. These cuts also do not accurately reflect enrollment; SPS predictions severely undercount schools with the most renters and immigrant students year after year.
Seattle Public Schools consistently underprojects enrollment causing staff cuts and schools beginning the school year understaffed. For the 2025-2026 school year, SPS projections were below actual enrollment by 890 students in elementary schools, 164 in middle schools, and 591 in high schools. A combination of inaccurate projections and changes to the student-staff ratios has resulted in massive staffing cuts.
Elementary enrollment is projected to decrease by 114 students, but SPS is proposing a cut of 30 FTE general education teachers; over half of those cuts will impact our highest-need schools. High school enrollment is projected to decrease by 15 students, but SPS is proposing a cut of 14.8 FTE general education teachers. Dramatic cuts have also occurred at individual sites such as Interagency, which has a projected loss of 50 students, and SPS is proposing to cut 7.6 FTE of general education teachers and 3 FTE of special education teachers.
We, the undersigned, are educators, families, and community members who reject staffing cuts and increased class sizes for the 2026-2027 school year. We call on the district to revise their process for determining enrollment to accurately reflect the needs of all students by:
Commit to a transparent and equitable adjustment process.
- Conduct a June adjustment. Schools must be notified of their enrollment and given an opportunity to ask for adjustment. All schools who apply for an adjustment should be given a written decision that justifies the decision.
- Address discrepancies in projected enrollment in all schools that have had historic under-projections of student enrollment and understaffing. Hold a meeting with educators and families at those schools.
- Make the mitigation process transparent. Some schools are getting positions back and some are not.
- Commit to a process that increases staffing based on October count if needed, but does not reduce staffing if schools are under their projected enrollment. Students and staff should not suffer because of faulty projections!
References and Additional Reading
Why is this important?
The new budgets cut teachers, counselors, and support staff from schools where educators are already working well over class and caseload limits (or currently have no limit in place).
Students should not be in class sizes of 30 or 40!
Students should not be in overcrowded and under-resourced classrooms.
Our students deserve stable learning environments and our educators deserve transparency.
It is a bargaining year for a new contract, and this is SPS's first move. Educators and community must have an organized response so SEA can win a strong contract for our students and schools.
Students should not be in class sizes of 30 or 40!
Students should not be in overcrowded and under-resourced classrooms.
Our students deserve stable learning environments and our educators deserve transparency.
It is a bargaining year for a new contract, and this is SPS's first move. Educators and community must have an organized response so SEA can win a strong contract for our students and schools.