UTICA, N.Y. -- Over the past few years, hundreds of positions have been cut from the Utica City School District due to lack of funding. This year, school officials announce that things are getting better.
As part of this year's state budget, legislators voted to increase Foundation Aid by more than $700 million.
The Utica City School District was initially looking at a $1.4 million deficit for next school year and possibly losing another 10 positions. Instead, they received an additional $5 million in Foundation Aid and were able to add 10 teachers, four social workers and two support staff positions.
"We have laid off 350 teachers. I mean this pales in comparison to putting teachers back on in the classroom and reducing class size, but it's a start and as I said, it's a beginning," said Christopher Salatino, Utica City School District’s board president. "And working together will allow us to continue our efforts to get the funding we desperately need.
School aid funding totals nearly $26 billion across the state. This is a more than 4% increase over last year. State officials say this increase will significantly help high needs districts like Utica.