Superintendent Dr. Brian Yearwood delivered his first State of the District address Friday morning.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) – The superintendent of Jefferson County Public Schools, Dr. Brian Yearwood, says the financial outlook for Kentucky’s largest school district is finally beginning to steady.
Dr. Yearwood gave his first State of the District address on Friday after stepping into the role in the summer of 2025. He directly addressed the $188 million budget deficit that has triggered job cuts and plans to close schools within Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS).
“Some days, though, I’m convinced the deficit has its own seat at the table,” he said. “It shows up early, and it stays late, and never misses a conversation.”
Still, the superintendent said the deficit has begun “losing its voice.”
During the address, Dr. Yearwood emphasized that district leaders are committed to resolving the budget crisis because they serve 94,000 students.
“This (budget shortfall) causes instability in the school system because that deficit is not just confined to spreadsheets,” he said. “Instability shows up in classrooms. Instability shows up in staffing. Instability shows up in opportunities for students and our students, they deserve stability.”
Dr. Yearwood outlined the district’s path forward as confronting reality, building stability and delivering for students. So far, the district has made roughly $132 million in cuts, including:
Reducing central office spending by $44 million
Reducing programmatic spending by $41 million
Reducing operations and transportation by $13 million
Saving $5 million through facilities optimization
Recovering $9 million through contract reviews
He also said the district is negotiating up to $30 million in additional long-term savings, which is why he declined to say whether further cuts are off the table.
“We work with the unions through bargaining,” he said. “We hope to see favorable outcomes, so we want to make sure that that is definitive when it comes to the end and we are able to actually say we’ve negotiated and we have arrived.”
Dr. Yearwood reaffirmed his goal of ensuring all 94,000 JCPS students achieve one full year of academic growth. However, some worry that staff reductions could threaten that objective. Among them is Nicole Humphrey, who represents clerical workers, cafeteria staff, paraeducators and instructional assistants, among others.
“We are looking at a lot of budget cuts that are eliminating positions that are front-facing in our schools,” she said. “Our elementary schools are losing their bookkeepers, and our high schools are losing their ordering and receiving clerks, along with several clerks and secretaries at central office as well. We want to make sure that we are offering our parents, our students, and our staff the very best service, and without those employees in those school buildings, that’s going to be extremely hard. I think we’ll see a big decline in our customer service and what we can do at those school levels.”
Although he acknowledged that the reductions and restructuring have been challenging, Dr. Yearwood said he remains optimistic about the district’s future.
“This is not about a deficit,” he said. “It is about destiny, the destiny of JCPS, and I refuse to believe that 94,000 futures cannot rise because a deficit tries to stand in the way.”
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