FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Marisa Berumen, mberumen@sandi.net, 619-847-6029
San Diego Unified Announces Update on Classified Staffing,
Identifies Opportunities to Reduce Potential Layoffs
District highlights ongoing efforts to place impacted staff in available positions while continuing negotiations with labor partners
SAN DIEGO (March 23, 2026) – San Diego Unified School District announces an update on its ongoing reduction in force (RIF) process for classified employees, with encouraging progress toward minimizing the number of staff impacted by potential layoffs.
Each year, state law requires school districts to make staffing decisions in March—often before final budget details are known. While this is a procedural requirement, district leaders acknowledge that the impact on staff is deeply personal and taken with the utmost seriousness.
Following earlier notifications regarding classified position eliminations, district teams have conducted a comprehensive analysis of current vacancies, anticipated openings for the upcoming school year, and the approximately 70 staff who do not have bumping rights under current agreements.
As a result of this work, the district has identified meaningful opportunities to place a significant number of impacted staff into existing or anticipated positions for the 2026–27 school year.
"We believe there are meaningful opportunities to place a significant number of our impacted colleagues into existing positions or new and anticipated positions for the coming year, with the goal of eliminating or significantly reducing the number of colleagues who would otherwise not have a position with San Diego Unified next school year," said Superintendent Dr. Fabiola Bagula.
This work is ongoing and remains preliminary, and final outcomes will be shaped through continued negotiations with our labor partners.
The district's Labor Relations and Human Resources teams are actively working with classified labor partners, including PARA and OTBS, as well as CSEA-affiliated units, to explore placement pathways and potential agreements that support employee retention while maintaining fiscal responsibility.
"We know these decisions carry real impact for our colleagues and their families," said Dr. Bagula. "Our focus is to do everything within our control to create pathways forward and retain our colleagues who serve our students every day."
San Diego Unified will continue refining placement opportunities, monitoring vacancies, and negotiating in good faith with labor partners in the coming weeks. The district remains committed to minimizing disruption and, wherever possible, preventing involuntary layoffs.
The Board of Education will receive an update on these efforts at its upcoming public meeting, Tuesday, March 24, 2026.
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