Lee County schools face $46.7M deficit, budget cuts ahead

LEE COUNTY, Fla. (WINK)—The School District of Lee County announced plans to begin realigning its school budgets, as its projected to face a $46.7 million deficit next school year.

Over the past couple of weeks, teachers have been notified that they will no longer be working with the district. Students and parents learned that their schools and programs may look a lot different come August.

Parents, teachers, and even students had been reaching out to WINK News for weeks, speaking up about their fears and concerns with the district's budget alignment. Some even showed up outside the district's office.

Superintendent Denise Carlin says the School District of Lee County has overspent by $35 million. That's why she says they are having schools realign their budgets.

Carlin says she wants to make one thing clear. At the end of the day, budgets will be reviewed personally by her to ensure that every school, teacher, staff member, and student has everything they need to succeed.

The district says it is now entering the second phase of the budget realignment, reviewing school budgets line by line to ensure each school has the resources it needs to help students succeed. 

Any additional funding requests schools have submitted will also be reviewed to support critical programs such as arts, athletics, and more.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis held a news conference earlier on Friday at Fort Myers High School, where he signed two pieces of legislature while talking about Florida's education system, teachers' union, and pay.