4J issues more than 170 layoff notices amid $46 million deficit

Performing arts teachers, meal service workers and other Eugene School District 4J employees received more than 170 layoff notices on May 1, putting about 265 full-time equivalent positions on the line for the 2026-27 school year. For families, the cuts reach straight into classrooms, lunch service and student supports before the final budget is even set.

The notices are part of a much larger financial squeeze. 4J leaders have been trying to close a deficit that had grown to about $46.4 million, while the Eugene School Board weighed roughly $30 million in proposed cuts. Earlier calculations suggested the district might need to cut another $10 million to $20 million beyond that, after reporting in April said 4J faced an additional $16.4 million shortfall on top of the reductions already approved.

The district has already been warning staff in affected areas. On April 26, 4J sent “notices of impacts” to performing arts teachers, and concerns quickly spread among students, parents and employees about what that could mean for music, theater and related programs. Earlier phases of the budget response also hit Eugene Online Academy and CTE programs, showing that the district’s problems are not confined to one department or one school.

Meal service is another early pressure point. On April 28, district food-service changes were under discussion, including whether scratch cooking and second helpings could continue. Those options were described as “not sustainable,” a sign that cafeteria operations may change as 4J tries to make the numbers work.

The latest layoffs do not mean every position will disappear, but they do put employees in limbo while administrators decide which jobs can be retained, restructured or eliminated. For staff, that uncertainty lands immediately, with the possibility of searching for work elsewhere before final budgets are approved. For students, the consequences could show up next year in fewer electives, less support, altered meal service and a thinner daily school experience.

The district’s response has unfolded in stages. In December 2025, 4J identified the first $2.3 million in reductions. By March 20, revised calculations suggested the deficit could be closer to $40 million to $50 million. On May 1, the layoff notices made the crisis personal for hundreds of workers across Lane County.

Miriam Miralles Mickelson, who is leading the district under a three-year contract that runs through June 2028, now faces the next round of decisions with the school board and the 14-person 4J Budget Committee. School Board meetings are typically held at 6 p.m. on the first and third Wednesdays of each month at the 4J Education Center, 200 North Monroe St. In the weeks ahead, that is where parents and staff will see whether the district’s next school year will be shaped by deep cuts or a smaller, delayed version of the same pain.