February 5, 2024
Dear CISD Community,
I want to reach out to our staff members, parents and community to share an update on the fiscal challenges Coppell ISD is facing concerning our budget, and the strategic and thoughtful measures being discussed and implemented to address this situation.
On August 28, 2023, the CISD Board of Trustees approved the 2023-2024 budget with a $13.4 million deficit. This shortfall is a result of various factors, including the slowing growth of CISD student enrollment, the cost of compensation for our teachers and staff to keep up with the cost of living and inflation, and the increased safety costs due to the state law requiring an armed guard at every campus.
Despite a $33 billion state budget surplus, our State Legislators did not provide school districts in Texas, including CISD, with substantial additional funding to respond to rising inflation, security mandates, staffing challenges and the increasing costs of public education.
As a means to align our revenue and expenditures, CISD is embarking on a multi-year budget planning process. The CISD Board of Trustees has established these priorities to guide this budget work:
Remain a leader in salary/benefits; employee retention
Educator support positions and training
Evaluate program effectiveness; offer choice programs; efficient operating costs
Open enrollment expansion
Use of the district’s fund balance
The School Board meetings and workshops timeline for the budget process includes:
Held January 22 Board Meeting — Mid-year update on the 23/24 budget and legislative action impacting school funding. (To view the presentation and a video recording from the January 22 Board Meeting, visit www.coppellisd.com/board)
February 5 Board Workshop — Two-year budget planning for 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 (To view the presentation and video recording from the February 5 Board Workshop, visit www.coppellisd.com/board)
March 4 Board Workshop
April 8 Board Workshop
May 13 Budget Workshop — First Draft General Operating Budget
June 10 Budget Workshop — Second Draft General Operating, Food Service budgets
July 16 Tentative Board Workshop
July 25 Certified Taxable Assessed Property Values released
August 12 Budget Workshop — Final General Operating Budget, Food Service Budget and Debt Service Budgets
August 26 Board Meeting — Adoption of 2024-2025 Budget and Tax Rate
As part of the budget planning process, CISD leadership staff are working to proactively address these budget challenges by examining how the district can be more efficient, as well as exploring ways of increasing revenue and cutting costs.
The information gathered from these efforts will be used to develop well-informed recommendations for action. We recognize that while short-term budget cuts can provide immediate savings, CISD needs long-term, sustainable strategies to achieve lasting budget reductions for the future. This budget work aligns with our core values, Community-Based Accountability System (CBAS) pillars and the Strategic Planning process to allow CISD to continue to innovate and provide programs that benefit our students, teachers and staff, and the community.
We understand the importance of maintaining transparency throughout this process. We will continue to provide information to our community after our Budget Workshops and Board Meetings. You can share your budget questions or feedback via email at input@coppellisd.com.
We are dedicated to addressing these budget challenges by working together and value your continued support as we strive to ensure the financial stability of CISD, which ultimately benefits our students, families, staff, and the community.
Sincerely,
Dr. Brad Hunt
Superintendent
Coppell Independent School District