Low Enrollment Forces Fresno Unified to Close 19 Preschool Classes

Fresno Unified School District announced it will close 19 preschool classes, a move district leaders link to insufficient enrollment and low student attendance while some local reports tie the closures to a $7 million loss in state funding. The preschool cuts are part of broader personnel actions that could touch hundreds of jobs across the district.

The district says it is confronting a $77 million budget deficit now and expects a $59 million deficit next year, figures that officials say have forced difficult choices. Board President, identified in different reports as Viva Islas and Veva Islas, framed the decision as driven by enrollment and attendance declines: “None of this is easy for us and we are in an extraordinary time having to make a very hard decision.” In a separate statement attributed under the alternate spelling, the board president added, “Nobody up here is wanting to make these decisions. We are in a forced position given our decreasing enrollment, given our decrease in attendance. All of that translates to dollars. We have been tapping into our reserve over the last two years to sustain positions. We are just no longer in a position where we can do that.”

Enrollment erosion is central to the district’s financial story. District analysis cited by local reporting says Fresno Unified has lost about 1,200 students per year since the pandemic, a decline that translates to roughly $15 million in lost revenue annually. District materials also reference lower cost-of-living adjustments and changes in state funding formulas as contributors to the worsening deficit, and a district statement indicates $39 million in reductions are planned to close gaps.

Trustees unanimously authorized district leaders to examine more than 250 positions for potential layoffs, hour reductions, or reorganization, a review that Fresnoland’s reporting breaks down as potentially affecting 190 full-time equivalent (FTE) classified positions, 63.94 classified vacancies, and 84 FTE certificated positions — the certificated count includes the 19 preschool teachers. Student representatives cast nonbinding nay votes on the trustees’ action. Fresnoland’s coverage also identifies heavy impacts for Home/School Spanish liaisons (the equivalent of 42 FTE positions) and lists 22 school counselors among certificated positions under consideration.

Community reaction at board meetings has been intense. Board chambers filled to capacity with lines down the street and members of all three employee unions in attendance, while the Fresno Teachers Association staged a protest outside management headquarters. Preschool teacher Mary Milan told trustees, “Please consider this because I have a lot of friends that are losing jobs and have dedicated their years.” Second grade teacher Chrysann Johnson described classroom fallout when support staff depart: “We have already found out that one of our NTAs, our Noon Time Assistants, is leaving us at the end of the year, just in my class alone. Two of my girls found out and came back from lunch so devastated. It took five minutes for them to stop crying.” Fresno High senior and foster student Copper Williams recounted losing access to a counselor who had helped him with FAFSA and foster youth rights: “I didn't know my foster youth rights until she told me about them. She told me about multiple things. She's helped me with my FAFSA. She's helped me with so many things I wouldn't have known about.”

District officials say cuts at the district office already reduced $3.5 million since 2023–24 and that an additional $9 million is proposed for next year. CFO Patrick Jensen defended staffing levels, saying the district is “very well staffed and has a full support system for students in every area.” District spokesperson AJ Kato said, “The official list of layoffs will be presented at a March 25 meeting,” while a Feb. 25 board meeting is scheduled to consider initial personnel reduction proposals. As Fresno Unified moves through those meetings, parents and staff face reduced preschool access and the prospect of fewer counselors and Spanish-language liaisons at schools across the county.