In an effort to balance the district’s budget, the board gave the go-ahead Thursday night to eliminate up to 100 positions, saving an estimated $10 million. NBC 7’s Jeanette Quezada was at the meeting and spoke with those directly affected by the decision.
With a 6-0 vote, the Poway Unified School District board unanimously approved to eliminate 100 positions, including special education, instructional assistants for English language learners, and student service assistants.
The district said the cuts will help reduce expenditures by $10 million for the 2025-26 school year.
“We are the social and emotional support for schools and our position is being cut,” Lena Rosquete said.
Rosquete is among the dozens of staff members who spoke at Thursday’s board meeting. As a student service assistant, she provides Poway students in TK-3rd grade with social and emotional support to help them learn confidently.
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“If they are not emotionally sound, how are they going to learn? It’s impossible,” she said.
Rosquete knows that firsthand; she has been a parent in the district for nine years. Her daughter benefited from those exact services she now offers.
“This is not a job that you do for the money, this is a job that you do for the passion of helping kids,” Rosquete said.
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Julie Thorpe’s eleven-year-old has been in the district’s special education program for seven years. She says those staff members have been essential in her son’s academic success.
“He’s an incredible young man on the autism spectrum and he’s excelled in this program and he would, I have no doubt, have fallen through the cracks without it,” Thorpe said.
District officials said the decision was made with much consideration of all the staff and families impacted by it.
“What we’re doing here, I think we can do with not enough money,” Vice President, Michelle O’Connor-Ratcliff said.
“This was not an easy decision by any means, there has been a lot of thought and planning that has gone into it because this is impacting people that we care about,” Reyna with Poway Unified School District said.
On Friday, Reyna confirmed to NBC 7 that layoff notices were going out but could be rescinded if other staff retire or quit.
