More than 80 Norwalk teachers could lose their jobs this fall because of budget cuts. Seventy percent of those teachers work at Norwalk elementary schools.

The Norwalk Board of Education has requested $13.2 million more than the city has approved. They will vote on the budget Tuesday night at 7 p.m.

Parents who spoke with News 12 lashed out at the school system.

"Accountability should be coming from the top," said Naramake Elementary School parent Michael Stenger. "A lot of the funding that dried up was federal and it came by way of COVID relief funds that had a set expiration date on them – so a little bit of lack of foresight but especially the transparency and the process.”

"We're losing equity with our neighboring towns and it's going to really affect our students," said Concord Magnet School parent Sarah Rabito.

Parents say music and arts programs across the board have just been decimated.

"It just seems so shortsighted to be losing music education and to be contracting and constricting our environment, our community like this. It's going to cost the city so much more to get teachers back by losing them now," said Wolfpit Elementary School parent Laurie Callen.

Parents say teachers found out about the cuts on Friday.

"We had teachers crying in the building. We had our spring picnic but we couldn't really focus on anything fun," said Wolfpit Elementary School parent Andrea DeGaetano.

These cuts come at a time when taxpayers have just been asked to pay much more in property taxes.

"We're being asked to contribute more and now our kids are receiving less. I think we need to be fully funding our education system because in my mind, there's no better investment than in our kids," said Stenger.

Norwalk Public Schools issued the following statement to News 12:

“Norwalk Public Schools deeply values the dedication of our educators and the critical role they play in our students’ success. Due to significant budget constraints, we have had to make difficult decisions, including substantial staff reductions, with all staffing moves made in accordance with contractual obligations.

These choices are never made lightly, and we thank everyone who advocated for our budget during more than a dozen meetings—including Common Council meetings, city public hearings, Board of Education meetings, School Governance Council (SGC) workshops and individual meetings with SGC and PTA groups—to ensure city leaders understood the district’s needs. 

Our priority remains supporting our educators while ensuring the best outcomes for our scholars.”