Tulsa Public Schools To Hold More Meetings About Budget Deficit

What to do with a $20 million budget deficit? That's the question facing Tulsa Public Schools right now.

TPS has scheduled three more meetings for Saturday. Just like before, the meetings are open to the public--allowing parents to come and ask any questions they have.

The meetings were at Disney Elementary, Rogers College High School, and Edison Preparatory at 9:30, 12:30, and 4, respectively.

Right now, it's been several weeks since TPS first announced the cuts.   

The district says lower enrollment and state budget forced them to slash the budget, which caught up with them over the past decade.   

TPS Superintendent Dr. Deborah Gist says teacher cutbacks aren't really an option.

"Everything is being considered right now. Certainly class size is something we're considering. We have to consider everything given the magnitude of where we are, but we hire so many teachers that if we did anything it would be a matter of what we do next year in terms of hiring, not losing any of the amazing people we have on our team right now." said Gist.

Dr. Gist says that reaction on what to do has been mixed; some people are optimistic while others are frustrated and angry.