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District 65 pushes its vote on closing Dewey and Lincolnwood to at least Nov. 16
District 65's estimated budget error grew to $27.35 million
Source: Evanston Patch
View as table
| Value | |
|---|---|
| Disclosed last month | $17 million |
| Revised figure | $27.35 million |
If you have a child in District 65, the school board postponed its vote on closing Dewey and Lincolnwood elementary schools until at least Nov. 16. Administrators want to cut about $20 million in spending by fiscal year 2028. The plan would also end Head Start and Early Head Start.
The delay follows a revised budget error tied to a capital double-count over five years. Not everyone wants to slow down. Thrive65 organizer Kelly Farley told the RoundTable the district is "going to be out of cash in a couple years if we don't make these cuts."
- Head Start grants: giving them up now delayed to July 1, 2029
- Head Start cut: 92.8 staff positions, according to administrators
- School-age childcare: spared, the district announced Thursday
- Other scenarios modeled: closing King Arts alone, or with Lincolnwood
Parents flagged two more problems in District 65's projections
- $3.2 million
- annual Foster lease payment left out of projections
- ~$2.3 million
- estimated savings from the closings, down from $2.9 million
Source: Evanston Patch
“I am furious because we are coming up with a plan based on data that we don't have.”
Jason Turow-Paul, Dewey parent
