Sequim schools to cut staffing

Published 1:30 am Monday, May 25, 2026

SEQUIM — The Sequim school board plans a reduction in force of about 15.8 full-time-equivalent employees due to a projected funding gap of nearly $2.5 million for the 2026-27 school year.

The $1.7 million in staff cuts will leave a $730,000 gap that the district plans to address this summer.

Board members voted 4-0 on May 13 with president Eric Pickens abstaining. The district will go from 310.75 FTEs this school year to a projected 294.95 next year.

Superintendent Regan Nickels wrote in an email that administrators have discussed elements of each school’s budget since February, and respective union representatives were updated, followed by staff members, in April.

District staff said the funding gap is in part due to an anticipated enrollment decline of 48 students district-wide next year. It currently has just fewer than 2,400 students.

“Apportionment is driven almost entirely by enrollment,” Nickels wrote. “If enrollment exceeds our projections, the district will evaluate as the first two weeks of school unfold.”

Staff also cited rising costs for staffing, healthcare, insurance, special education and transportation along with the state not fully funding Implicit Price Deflator (IPD) increases to keep pace with inflation.

On May 4, Nickels said a recent influx of students had increased the district’s projected enrollment by about 10.

Position cuts

The reductions for next year total $1,734,170 and include:

• 0.6 administrators at $121,170.

• 8.2 certificated staff at $1,261,273.

• 7 paraeducators at $351,727.

Many of the reductions come through attrition following voluntary separations, such as retirements.

Principal Ned Floeter at Olympic Peninsula Academy (OPA) and Dungeness Virtual School (DVS), who also oversees Career Technical Education, has announced his retirement. Nickels said they’re planning to restructure leadership for the schools and CTE program.

At the elementary level, three teacher positions, a literacy specialist and a 0.4 FTE teacher on special assignment will not be replaced. Nickels said one literacy specialist will now serve Greywolf and Helen Haller Elementary schools. Two classrooms will become split first and second grades and fourth- and fifth-grade classrooms to reduce two FTE positions.

Sequim Middle School will see reductions in electives (0.4 FTE), English Language Arts (one position), math (0.2) and science (0.2).

Nickels said a music appreciation class and one section of band will not be offered at the middle school due to a lack of class signups. She wrote that the band program will remain available for grades 6-12, with one class for sixth- and seventh-graders, and eighth-graders will join the high school band in grades 9-12. All classes will be held at the middle school.

For the high school, a special education 0.6 FTE will be reduced via an internal transfer, and the Career Technical Education program will see a 0.4 FTE reduction following a leave of absence.

Dungeness Virtual School will reduce by one FTE to three FTEs due to enrollment.

Nickels said its enrollment starts lower in the fall, at 82 this school year, and progressively moves up through May and then down. It currently has 129 students and is projected to have 85 students in the fall.

She said the district is in the application process to secure multi-district licensure to allow the district to enroll students from outside the school district beyond its current choice transfer process.

The district also is reducing its paraeducator staff by seven positions with one via voluntary separation.

Nickels said they’re going to wait on attrition later in the school year before giving notices to affected paraeducators.

Board members thanked the administration on May 13 for pursuing reductions mostly through attrition.

Board director Nick Bell thanked staff who would be affected by reductions and said the board’s decision is not a reflection of their professionalism.

Nickels said while they sought the reductions through attrition, it “doesn’t mean our schools will be staffed to the level we need … we recognize we won’t be the same school district after (the reductions are approved).”

Nickels said they’ll likely discuss more budget planning at the June 15 meeting.

Saralyn Pozernick, president of the Sequim Education Association, the district’s teachers union, wrote in an email that it’s difficult to see coworkers deal with a loss of income due to a layoff. She said the union will always advocate for students to get the support they need, and they want to ensure students are getting the individualized attention they need to thrive. Increasing educator workload makes that more difficult to achieve, she wrote.

“It is our hope that, as the budget situation becomes clearer, the district will decide to restore as many positions as possible to ensure the students in Sequim get the support they need,” Pozernick said. “Our community has proven they value our schools and educators, and we know they expect the district to prioritize the people that work most closely with students.”

Remaining gap

Staff presented further options to cover the projected $730,000 gap by reducing materials, supplies and operating costs, evaluating one-time use of the district’s fund balance or making further staffing cuts.

Board directors Patrice Johnston and Michael Rocha expressed their desire not to use the fund balance as Johnston said she feels the district worked hard to establish it.

Rocha said they’ve seen other districts struggle financially and Sequim has “had a conscious effort to increase our fund balance.”

On May 4, Nickels said they’ve seen much worse conditions and the district’s “frugality has put us in a position to make decisions whereas some other school districts are up against the wall.”

She said May 13 the district has a board policy to have about 4 percent to 6 percent of its budget in its fund balance, and at the end of the school year, they’re projected to have about 1 percent, or about $3.4 million.

The state Auditor’s Office said the district has about 26 days of expenses on hand, and the state requests at least 60 days for a higher rating.

Board director Maren Halvorsen didn’t express opposition to using the fund balance for the gap deficit, saying it’s there for a crisis and not to be abused or overused.

“It’s there to be used in a judicious and careful way,” she said.

Nickels said using the fund balance would mitigate the gap and would be “a more compassionate way out for the people who exist right now, (but) it’s not for the system in the ensuing years. There are always faces to these decisions.”

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Matthew Nash is a reporter with the Olympic Peninsula News Group, which is composed of Sound Publishing newspapers Peninsula Daily News, Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum. He can be reached by email at matthew.nash@sequimgazette.com.