School on the brink of collapse as it suffocates under staggering deficit

A Northern California high school will soon shut its doors for good after struggling for years amid declining enrollment and under a whopping $300,000 plus deficit.

Last week, board members with the Sacramento City Unified School District Board of Education met to discuss the possible closure of George Washington Carver School of Arts and Sciences. 

At the meeting, the board voted that the charter school, at 10101 Systems Parkway in Rancho Cordova, will close at the end of the 2025-2026 school year, effective June 30.

The school faces a deficit of more than $388,000 in order to be financially solvent for the 2026-2027 school year, per the district. 

The board said the decision follows several months of careful review of the school’s “fiscal condition, enrollment trends, and potential pathways to sustainability.”

“Based on this analysis, the Board determined that there is not a reasonable likelihood that the school can achieve or maintain fiscal solvency in the coming years. Carver, like all Charter Schools in the State of California, is required to be financially solvent under the law.”

The board did state that it could revisit this decision if adequate external funding is committed to George Washington Carver before the April 30 Board Meeting.

The school needs to come up with at least “$300,000 in unrestricted funds to remain solvent,” it added.

According to the board’s executive summary, the school continues to experience a “structural deficit in which ongoing expenditures exceed projected revenues.”

“We know this is a difficult moment, and we will continue to engage with and support the Carver community in the days and weeks ahead,” a statement from the board read.

The charter school has continued to lose attendance over the years. Carver’s registrar, Yvonne Spruell, told KCRA 3 that there were 146 students at the school as of April.

In the budget report, it also said that only 111 students planned to come back next year. Compounding the problem, the school has lost a number of longtime teachers, per the Sacramento Bee.

Amanda Goldman, SCUSD’s director of innovative schools told the Bee that, “Charter schools, under law, are required to be financially solvent because there’s no broader entity to bail them out if they run out of money.”

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“So with a charter school, you either have enough money or somebody has to give you more money.”

Goldman confirmed to The Post that “enrollment at Carver has hovered around 150-170 for the past three years. She added that 10 years ago it was double the current number.”

The move to close the school comes at a time when the District is “facing significant and ongoing financial challenges,” the board noted.

In order to support families and students, the board said that the district would “work with each family to identify and enroll them in a new school that meets their needs.”

“Additional communication with detailed information about school options, enrollment support, and key next steps will be shared early next week.”

It added, “The School will focus on doing everything possible to make the end of the school year positive and memorable for current students.”

The Post reached out to the school for further comment.