Embedded Files
District 118 Administration to Implement 3-Year Budget Deficit Reduction Plan
Our schools are valuable community assets. As such, our administrative team and Board are working on thoughtfully responding to a budget deficit with a focus on continuing all course offerings, core and elective programs, athletics, activities, and required supports for students with IEPs and English Learners.
The 2025-26 School Year included District 118’s effort to respond to the district ending the 2024-25 fiscal year with a $2.5 million deficit that propagated to the 2025-26 budget, which was approved by the Board of Education on September 18, including a $4.2 million deficit (out of our $82 million budget) in the Operating Funds. The administrative team took immediate action to reduce the 2025-26 budget, reducing that budget by $2.0 million throughout the 2025/26 School Year.
On January 15, 2026, the District 118 Board of Education took the difficult, but necessary step of unanimously approving the Budget Deficit Reduction Plan that will return our district to a sound financial footing. Considering the 2025-26 and 2026-27 budgets, District 118 cut $7 million out of our expenses, half of which was generated by changes to operations. The other half impacted personnel. We have committed to continuing all course offerings, core and elective programs, athletics, activities, and required supports for students with IEPs and English Learners.
We remain grateful for the level of engagement from our stakeholders, the partnership between administration and union leadership, and the Board of Education members. They remained in their governance role while asking insightful questions that added value to the administrative team’s plan development.
The work ahead of us includes our D118 Family supporting one another to be successful next year. We will analyze our changes and verify their impact on the budget as we make any needed adjustments.
Additional Information as of June 2, 2026 includes:
Staffing Plan Progress
The 2026/27 staffing plan has followed the Budget Deficit Reduction Plan with the following exceptions:
A 1.0 FTE Psychologist reduction was changed to a 0.8 FTE reduction across elementary schools (out of a total of 5.8 FTE)
A 0.5 FTE Elementary Adaptive PE reduction (out of 1.0 FTE) was removed from the BDR to provide required support
Middle School Homeroom’s 2.8 FTE reduction was reduced to 2.4 FTE (out of 38.2 FTE), and the Exploratory classes 0.4 FTE reduction was increased to 0.8 FTE (out of 7.2 FTE) to meet scheduling needs (no net change)
The piloted 1.0 FTE secretarial reduction at WGS has not worked and has been removed from the BDR (the position is posted and will be filled this year)
Savings generated in the LED project (see below) also create a contingency fund that can be used to respond to the highest priority unexpected enrollment needs as we proceed into the 2026-27 School Year.
Executive Summary of the Special Education Audit
Part of our verification work has included a Special Education Audit that was recommended as part of the Financial Audit that was presented to the Board of Education by Transformational Business Services at the January 8, 2026, Board of Education Meeting. The June 1, 2026 Board Meeting included a review of the Executive Summary of the first phase of our Special Education Audit. A few key highlights included:
The audit noted high rates of student identification for 504 plans and, to some extent, IEPs, identifying this as an area for systemic review.
The identified Budget Deficit Reduction (BDR) cuts within the Special Services department are categorized as reasonable and strategically necessary.
There is a need to build our staffing plan and schedules collaboratively (building and Special Services leaders) to ensure that personnel are allocated based on student need and identified special education minutes as stipulated in IEPs.
The audit highlights that strengthening MTSS (Multi-Tiered System of Supports) is a critical priority, as the lack of consistency in strong Tier 1 practices and robust early intervention is one of the common reasons 504s and, to an extent, IEP rates are high.
The audit results will inform Special Services priorities as we work together generating a vision for MTSS and continuously improve.
Utilizing Opportunities for Operational Savings
This summer’s work will include partnering with AP Energy Solutions, which will replace all District 118 light fixtures with LED lights at no cost to the District. The District conducted a site visit at Libertyville High School, which recently replaced its lights with LED fixtures through AP Energy Solutions and received positive feedback on the installation and fixtures. The vast majority of fixtures will be fully replaced with new LED lights. Retrofitting will be used for some lights, such as exterior mounted fixtures, where appropriate.
The District was able to capitalize on the additional rebates available through ComEd. We estimate an energy savings to the district of about $100,000 each year, which will provide contingency funds to respond to the highest priority unexpected enrollment needs as we proceed into the 2026-27 School Year.
Maximizing Grants
Our Cabinet Team has worked hard to transparently collaborate and maximize the impact of our grants (IDEA, TITLE, and ALOP). We have eliminated costs and strategically placed needed expenses and positions within grants that maximize efficiency.
Sound 2026/27 Budget
District 118 continues to develop a sound draft 2026-27 budget without a deficit. Analysis of all aspects of the Budget Deficit Reduction Plan will be conducted to ensure we continue to realize identified savings as we continue to implement the plan with fidelity and transparently share any needed adjustments.
Understanding the District's Response
What is a budget deficit?
A budget deficit is a financial shortfall that occurs when spending exceeds revenue for a fiscal year. District 118 ended the 2024-25 fiscal year with a $2.5 million deficit. This deficit propagated to the 2025-26 budget, which was approved by the Board of Education on September 18 and included a $4.2 million deficit in the Operating Funds.
Why are we in this situation?
After analyzing spending from the 2024-25 Fiscal Year, a number of factors were determined to have contributed to the budget deficit. Significant factors impacting our 2024-25 unaudited expenses exceeding our budget include:
Substitute Budget
Staffing Budget
Out-of-District Tuition Budget
Out-of-District Transportation Budget
Lower than anticipated State Revenue
Work has included analyzing factors that impacted our budget performance. These include:
Basing our budget levels for certain areas on the previous budget instead of the previous year’s actual revenue and expenditures
Staffing costs associated with bringing back special education programs were not fully incorporated into the budget
Adding new positions & expenses that exceeded our funding
Lower than anticipated State Funding & the end for Federal ESSER COVID Funding
What is the plan?
District 118’s Administrative Team has worked diligently to resolve the budget deficit, balancing fiscal responsibility with the commitment to preserving high-quality educational experiences for our students. The budget changes captured in our Budget Deficit Reduction (BDR) plan will restore a fiscally sound budget for District 118 without a tax increase beyond the limit of the tax cap (5% or CPI, whichever is lower, plus new growth). Read about District 118’s upcoming FY25 Tax Levy to learn more.
Upon learning of the budget deficit, the Board of Education directed the Administrative Team to define and implement BDR plan to restore the district’s sound financial footing.
The administrative team took immediate action to reduce the 2025-26 budget, which has been reduced by $1.5M. To define required reductions in next year’s budget, our Cabinet has worked diligently to meet the Board’s directive by:
Soliciting BDR options from our Unions, Administrative Council (District Cabinet & Building Principals), Cabinet Team, Buildings and Grounds, and Transportation, and incorporated into BDR reductions
Completing five rounds of BDR work with continuous feedback from our administration and Board, which now includes draft changes that generate a $5.1M reduction in the projected 2026-27 Budget that is no longer projected to have a deficit
As promised, our efforts began with a focus on reducing operational costs (and exploring increasing fees), then incorporating administrative/non-union reductions. If our budget deficit could have been solved through those two avenues, we would have done so. With the scope of the budget deficit, the plan also includes reducing and reallocating support staff and instructional staff. Changes also complete a return to traditional class sizes and strategically reduce staffing budgets.
All course offerings, core and elective programs, athletics, activities, and required supports for students with IEPs and English Learners will continue. Wauconda CUSD 118’s budget mirrors that of most school districts, with roughly 75% of our operating budget going to salaries and benefits. Because nearly 75% of the district’s operating budget is tied to salaries and benefits, balancing the budget cannot be done without affecting staffing. As a result, it is likely that class sizes will increase, and some positions and supports will be reduced, while administrative roles take on additional responsibilities.
Initially, plans included approving a Working Draft of the Budget Deficit Reduction Plan on December 13, 2025. We are grateful for over 400 committed and passionate community members and staff members who joined our November 6, 2025, Board Meeting. Your voices, your passion, and your commitment to our students, teachers, and staff were unmistakable. We have heard our community.
After hearing from the community and taking time to reflect, the Board of Education and Interim Co-Superintendents paused before moving forward with the draft Budget Deficit Reduction Plan (BDR).
On January 15, 2026, the District 118 Board of Education took the difficult, but necessary step of unanimously approving the Budget Deficit Reduction Plan that will return our district to a sound financial footing.
3-Year Budget Deficit Reduction Plan Overview
What to Expect:
Year 1:
D118 implemented targeted operational reductions and froze contingency staffing plans. Prior to budget approval, the Cabinet team identified and implemented $850k of reductions. Additional reductions to this year's budget that can be implemented will continue to be identified and incorporated throughout the year.
Year 2:
The bulk of the BDR Plan will be implemented during the 2026-27 School Year. Our plan begins with a focus on reducing operational costs (and exploring increasing fees), then will incorporate staffing reductions in administrative and support staff, and finally will consider certified staffing positions as needed.
Year 3:
Determine and implement staffing reductions that can be attained through attrition along with any additional cuts to be implemented after analyzing the impacts of Year 1 and Year 2 reductions. This will be an ongoing process of monitoring our budget performance and progress to determine any additional adjustments to D118’s operations or staffing levels.
Report abuse