Cost Containment Team Meeting January 21, 2026

Cost Containment Team Continues Collaborative Efforts to Develop Recommendations for District Leadership

Emporia, KS – Emporia Public Schools’ Cost Containment Team met Tuesday evening to continue its collaborative work focused on identifying responsible opportunities to align district operating expenses with anticipated revenues while continuing to maintain high-quality services for students.

Building on prior sessions, team members worked in table groups to consolidate ideas into a room-level consensus on items to move forward for further cost containment consideration. Each proposal was evaluated using the district’s established pillars of Value (financial impact), Feasibility (ease of implementation), and Risk (potential impact to students, staff, and the community).

During the session, teams first identified a shared list of proposals for continued review and then worked to prioritize those items into three levels based on fiscal responsibility and overall impact. The group was guided by a minimum target of $4 million in Priority 1 items, representing actions that rise to the top as necessary steps to address immediate financial alignment. Participants also identified additional priorities to provide district leadership with a broader range of options should further reductions be necessary.

Room-level consensus discussions were facilitated by district leaders, who supported the process by providing clarification, ensuring consistency across groups, and guiding conversations toward practical next steps. The prioritized input from each room will be compiled to support the next phase of review.

The Cost Containment Team will meet again on February 3 to work toward full-team consensus and develop formal feedback for the Superintendent’s Leadership Team (SLT). The SLT will then collaborate with building and department leadership to evaluate the team’s input and determine a reasonable set of items for potential implementation.

As with all previous sessions, the Cost Containment Team serves in an advisory capacity. The team’s role is to provide thoughtful, data-informed insight to support district leadership in making fiscally responsible decisions.

Emporia Public Schools will continue to share updates with staff and families as the cost containment process moves forward.