Overview:
In her Parent Power column, Khulia F. Pringle examines the financial pressure facing Minnesota schools and the students most likely to feel it. Minneapolis Public Schools found about $10.8 million in overlooked special education revenue, shrinking its projected gap to $39.7 million. Saint Paul Public Schools lost nearly $5 million after English learner enrollment fell, partly tied to federal immigration enforcement, and weighed midyear teacher cuts. A state commission has also outlined more than $250 million in special education reductions. Pringle calls for racial equity impact assessments, real family participation and a state funding system that reflects what it costs to educate children well.
Every year, school districts talk about balancing budgets, declining enrollment, staffing reductions and difficult financial decisions. But I want us to ask a different question: When schools cut budgets, who actually pays the price?
Behind every budget reduction is a child who may lose access to something they need to succeed: a reading intervention, a classroom assistant, a trusted educator, a special education service, an English learner teacher or a program that made school a place where they felt connected and supported.
For families, these aren’t numbers on a spreadsheet. They are resources our children depend on every day.
Across Minnesota, school districts face serious financial challenges. Minneapolis Public Schools began its 2026-27 budget process with a projected $50.5 million gap. After reviewing how special education expenses were categorized and reimbursed, the district identified about $10.8 million in additional revenue, reducing the projected gap to $39.7 million.
Think about that. Millions of dollars that could support students surfaced through a review of the district’s own financial practices.
MPS acknowledged that it may not have maximized special education reimbursements for several years and that past financial problems had harmed students, families and employees.
That should concern all of us. Before we eliminate positions, reduce programs or ask children to go without, shouldn’t we be certain every available dollar has been accounted for? And shouldn’t families understand how those decisions were made?
Saint Paul Public Schools faces its own difficult situation. The district reported 542 fewer English learner students than projected this school year, costing it nearly $5 million in funding. District leaders have linked part of that decline to federal immigration enforcement and other changes affecting immigrant families.
The district initially proposed midyear cuts to English learner teaching positions. After strong opposition from educators and community members, the school board delayed the decision and directed administrators to explore alternatives. As I write this, the district is considering a revised approach intended to avoid those layoffs.
Consider what this represents. Children and families already living with uncertainty and disruption now attend schools under financial pressure that could reduce their support. How does pulling resources from vulnerable school communities help close educational disparities?
We cannot keep talking about educational equity while making financial decisions without examining who will bear the greatest burden. Black students, multilingual learners, students with disabilities and children already struggling academically cannot afford to lose more ground.
I’ve spent years working alongside families fighting for reading interventions, appropriate special education services and safe, supportive learning environments. These families aren’t asking for extras. They’re asking for what their children need to learn.
We also need to be honest about where responsibility lies. School districts decide how resources are allocated, but they do not control the funding system. Minnesota lawmakers set much of the framework that determines how public schools are funded. Responsibility for adequately funding public education cannot rest solely on superintendents and school boards. The Minnesota Legislature must be held accountable, too.
That responsibility is becoming more urgent. Minnesota’s Blue Ribbon Commission on Special Education recently outlined recommendations involving more than $250 million in funding reductions. The commission itself acknowledged the potential harm, particularly for marginalized students, and called for reconsideration of the legislative mandate behind those cuts.
Why is our state considering reductions to special education funding when districts are already struggling to meet student needs?
We cannot demand stronger literacy outcomes while reducing academic interventions. We cannot say we value inclusion while weakening supports for students with disabilities. And we cannot claim to value multilingual students while treating the educators who serve them as expendable when enrollment shifts.
Another question deserves far more attention: Whose voices are included when these decisions are made? Are families told which schools and programs will be affected? Are they given information they can understand? Do they know what alternatives were considered? Are the families whose children will feel the greatest impact helping shape those decisions?
For years, I have advocated for community engagement that goes beyond presentations, surveys and public comment. Budget decisions should be no different. Before approving major reductions, districts should publicly examine who benefits, who loses and whether the changes will disproportionately harm communities already experiencing educational disparities. That is why I continue to call for racial equity impact assessments that examine the consequences of public decisions before they are finalized.
Districtwide averages are not enough. A reduction that looks manageable across a district can be devastating for a school already struggling to provide adequate support. The same accountability must apply to state funding decisions.
As Minnesota prepares for the 2027 legislative session, families, educators, community organizations and policymakers should demand a funding system that reflects what it actually costs to educate children well. We need transparency. We need responsible financial oversight. We need meaningful family participation. And we need a commitment to protecting the opportunities of children who have already faced too many barriers.
I understand that budgets must balance. But children get only one chance at each year of their education. They cannot wait for the next funding cycle to receive the support they need today.
A balanced budget should never be our only measure of success. We must also ask whether children are learning, whether disparities are narrowing and whether today’s decisions strengthen or weaken their futures.
When schools cut budgets, the true cost isn’t always found in a financial report. Sometimes it’s found in the opportunities our children never receive.
Khulia F. Pringle, M.A., is founder and executive director of S.T.A.N.D. Up Minnesota Parents United, commissioner on the Saint Paul Recovery Act Commission on Reparations, and co-chair of the Minnesota Literacy Coalition. You can reach her directly at khuliapringle@standupmpu.org.
