By Ryan Robinson Education Matters –

With the end of 2025 fast approaching, it seems a good time to update readers on the financial state of the Telluride R-1 School District. I am fortunate, when not serving on the Telluride School Board, to work with many small and medium sized businesses across the country in my capacity as an investor. It’s always exciting to see a business experience a period of sustained growth — adding services, expanding operations, hiring new people. But when revenue declines, the tone and focus change. Leaders must make difficult, often painful decisions to keep the organization healthy.  This year, our school district has faced a similar moment as we’ve confronted two separate but compounding financial pressures — both of which fall largely outside local control.

First, we are experiencing declining student enrollment. Colorado’s school funding formula ties state dollars directly to the number of students in a district. When enrollment goes down, state funding goes down with it. Even a modest decline in the number of students enrolled can create a significant, negative impact on the district’s operating budget.

Second, Colorado is facing ongoing statewide budget challenges. Colorado’s legislature continues to evaluate how to balance statewide needs, including healthcare, housing, transportation, public safety and, of course, public education. This year, changes to the school finance formula have resulted in reduced revenues for districts like ours. These statewide adjustments are often technical and complex; but for us, the effect is simple: less money coming in.

The two factors feed into one another. Fewer students mean fewer dollars. State adjustments further tighten what is already a lean budget. By last fall, it was clear we would enter this school year with noticeably less funding than the previous year.

I want our community to know how proud I am of the way Superintendent John Pandolfo and his team approached this challenge. They undertook a thorough, difficult analysis of every part of the school district’s spending. Nothing was off the table. And that is far harder than it sounds. It’s one thing to, say, look at switching to a less expensive vendor for custodial services. It is something else entirely to discuss reducing art and other elective offerings, increasing student activity and sports fees or limiting access to behavioral health supports.

Read the entire Telluride Times article here.