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SU Staffing Trends

Executive Summary

SU Staffing Trends

Everything on this page is General Fund staffing, matching the two General Fund assessments the local districts pay: Administration & Operations, the central office and regular-education support services the three districts share, and Special Education, the student support services the SU delivers in the schools. The chart and tables below show each on its own and then total them.

Special Education is by far the larger block so it absorbs most of any changes in absolute terms, and it remains the single largest cost pressure in the budget. Administration & Operations is the deeper cut proportionally: it gives up close to a fifth of its people over the same three years.

Head count and full-time equivalents move together here, which is worth noticing: the SU is not quietly converting full-time positions into part-time ones. It is carrying fewer people and fewer hours.

General Fund staffing, FY26 to FY28

The General Fund shed people through FY27 and turns back up in FY28. The General Fund carries 108 people in FY28, 6 fewer than in FY26 (−5.3%), and 100.23 FTE, down 4.55 (−4.3%) since FY26. Both bars in each pair use the same scale: where the FTE bar falls short of the head-count bar, that difference is part-time staff.

WSESU General Fund staffing, FY26 to FY28 Grouped bar chart of WSESU General Fund staffing for FY26 to FY28. Each year shows two bars on one scale, head count and full-time equivalents, each split into Special Education and Administration & Operations. Head count moves from 114 to 108 people and FTE from 104.78 to 100.23. 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 Administration & Operations Special Education FY26 Special Education: 97 people 97 FY26 Administration & Operations: 17 people 17 114 People FY26 Special Education: 88.28 FTE 88.28 FY26 Administration & Operations: 16.50 FTE 16.50 104.78 FTE FY27 Special Education: 92 people 92 FY27 Administration & Operations: 15 people 15 107 People FY27 Special Education: 84.15 FTE 84.15 FY27 Administration & Operations: 14.26 FTE 14.26 98.41 FTE FY28 Special Education: 94 people 94 FY28 Administration & Operations: 14 people 14 108 People FY28 Special Education: 86.33 FTE 86.33 FY28 Administration & Operations: 13.90 FTE 13.90 100.23 FTE FY26FY27FY28 Budgeted General Fund positions: people and full-time equivalents

Special Education is 87% of General Fund staff in FY28. Across the window it is down 3 people (−3.09%) and Administration & Operations is down 3 of 17 (−17.65%), the larger move in percentage terms.

How fast each group is changing

The same head counts read as a rate of change, against FY26 as the baseline.

General Fund staffing, change since FY26 Line chart of WSESU General Fund head count as percent change from FY26. Administration & Operations falls to −17.65%, Special Education to −3.09%, and the General Fund total to −5.26% by FY28. -20% -15% -10% -5% 0% FY26 FY27 FY28 Change in people since FY26 Administration & Operations, FY26: 0% Administration & Operations, FY27: -11.8% Administration & Operations, FY28: -17.6% Special Education, FY26: 0% Special Education, FY27: -5.2% Special Education, FY28: -3.1% General Fund total, FY26: 0% General Fund total, FY27: -6.1% General Fund total, FY28: -5.3% Administration & Operations Special Education General Fund total General Fund staffing, change since FY26 Line chart of WSESU General Fund head count as percent change from FY26. Administration & Operations falls to −17.65%, Special Education to −3.09%, and the General Fund total to −5.26% by FY28. -20% -15% -10% -5% 0% FY26 FY27 FY28 Change in people since FY26 Administration & Operations, FY26: 0% Administration & Operations, FY27: -11.8% Administration & Operations, FY28: -17.6% Special Education, FY26: 0% Special Education, FY27: -5.2% Special Education, FY28: -3.1% General Fund total, FY26: 0% General Fund total, FY27: -6.1% General Fund total, FY28: -5.3% Administration & Operations Special Education General Fund total

By FY28 Administration & Operations is down 17.6%, Special Education down 3.1%, and the General Fund as a whole down 5.3%. The two halves are moving differently, and Administration & Operations is the steeper of the two.

The numbers behind the chart

Download this table (CSV)

Head count: people in the budgeted General Fund staffing plan
Category FY26FY27FY28 FY26 → FY28 % change
Administration & Operations 171514 −3 −17.65%
Special Education 979294 −3 −3.09%
General Fund total 114107108 −6 −5.26%
Full-time equivalents: the same plan measured in FTE
Category FY26FY27FY28 FY26 → FY28 % change
Administration & Operations 16.5014.2613.90 −2.60 −15.76%
Special Education 88.2884.1586.33 −1.95 −2.21%
General Fund total 104.7898.41100.23 −4.55 −4.34%