Jonesboro, AR – JonesboroRightNow.com – Brookland Public Schools’ (BPS) Superintendent George Kennedy has confirmed to JRN that approximately 12 licensed staff members have been notified they will not be recommended for contract renewal next year.

Kennedy confirmed he held meetings this week to inform certain licensed educators, a classification that refers to certified classroom teachers and licensed professionals, that they are not on his recommendation list for the upcoming 2026-2027 academic year.

In a series of statements, Kennedy explicitly denied that any staff members were terminated mid-year. Initially pointing to the repeal of Fair Dismissal laws to avoid commenting on future contracts, Kennedy later clarified his position.

“No teacher was let go. There was no immediate firing. All contracts will be and are being honored,” he said. “I [will] present a list of recommendations to be offered contracts for next year of licensed staff at the March board meeting. That is done in executive session. I did meet with some staff to inform them that I was not recommending them. I wanted to inform them before we had the meeting.”

Regarding the exact number of affected staff, Kennedy confirmed that as of right now, 12 would be impacted. But he added, “That number could go down or up in the next few months.”

Kennedy cited the upcoming March 3 millage election as his reason for the early notification.

“I didn’t want to wait until after the election because I felt like I would not be transparent. So I just went ahead and spoke with everyone that I could,” he explained.

The Financial Reality

The district’s staffing cuts come as it is dealing with an unexpected and severe drop in student growth money. Board President Danna Johnson told JRN the district is facing a significant financial hurdle.

“From our side, we are trying to get the budget in balance,” she said. “Our revenues that we were receiving for student growth dropped substantially for this year, and that was unexpected,” she said.

According to Johnson, they received $426,000 in student growth funds last year. As of this year, that number plummeted to just $22,935.

While the community’s growth has brought in additional tax dollars, Johnson explained that the extra tax revenue “doesn’t even begin to cover” the skyrocketing costs of maintaining the growing student body and expanding facilities.

According to data provided by Johnson, during the 2013-2014 school year, the district recorded $4,213,643 in tax revenue, a payroll of $12,081,042, and an enrollment of 1,967 students.

By the 2024-2025 school year, tax revenue had increased by $6.7 million to a total of $10,983,940. However, enrollment had surged to 2,997 students. To support this growth, the district’s payroll more than doubled to $26,590,288, an increase of over $14 million.

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“I do know that [Kennedy] is trying to balance his budget, and he did tell us that that was going to require him to have some really hard conversations and probably have to reduce some staff,” she said.

The Board’s Role

While the district is actively campaigning for a 3.95-mill property tax increase for the March ballot to fund several items, including a new training center and cafeteria facilities, it won’t be enough to prevent the immediate teacher cuts.

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Johnson explained that, even if the millage passes, it will be approximately two years before the district actually receives any of that revenue. She explained that the budget must be balanced regardless of the election’s outcome.

Furthermore, the board will officially vote on the teacher non-renewals before they even know if the millage has passed. The board’s contract renewal meeting is scheduled for Monday, March 2, the day before the election. During that meeting, the board will receive Kennedy’s final list of recommendations.

Johnson noted the board currently does not know the identities of the 12 educators, as they must remain legally impartial to serve as a “jury” in the event an employee requests a hearing. The board cannot selectively approve contracts; they must vote to accept or reject the superintendent’s recommendation list as a whole.

This is a developing story. JRN will continue to follow the story and provide further details as they are available.

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