Woodland Hills School District introduces plan to cut staff as extra funding runs out

ALLEGHENY COUNTY, Pa. — Cutting staff, especially teachers, is a big decision in any school district. It’s a decision the Woodland Hills School District does not take lightly, and that’s why they held a public meeting Wednesday night to lay out the plan to the community.

Superintendent Dr. Daniel Castagna spoke with Channel 11 and said the district is overstaffed after funding allowed them to add on to help with COVID-19 learning loss.

The challenge is keeping student services, such as social workers, while preparing to lose the pandemic-era funding.

That funding is set to run out in the next two years and the board is trying to get ahead of it by cutting positions gradually. The plan that was introduced includes four administrator cuts and 16 full-time teacher furloughs.

“They had enough fund balance that they could have made it through another year, but I told them the snowball’s coming down the mountain, and you’re looking at ripping a huge bandaid off in two years and possibly eliminate 60 to 70 positions. So you have to decide,” Castangna said.

This will be the third time positions have been cut in this district in the last six years. Castagna said the cuts wouldn’t impact class sizes or learning, because the district has lost 24% of its students over the last decade.

“Our average district-wide is 11 students per class, well below the state average,” Castagna said.

To combat the decrease in enrollment, Woodland Hills is lowering its taxes for the first time in history to try to make the district more attractive to families coming in.

Right now, Woodland Hills has the fifth-highest tax rate in Allegheny County.

“The plan is to continue that relief. So we’re trying to chip away at something that’s a major problem in this is pushing some residents away from moving in,” Castagna explained.

If the board accepts the changes, the official vote will be next Wednesday.

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