OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Oklahoma City Public Schools will slash its teaching workforce as the district faces what it describes as a "catastrophic budget crisis."
The state's largest district announced Wednesday in a statement that it will eliminate 208 teaching positions for the 2016-17 school year to save an estimated $8 million annually at a time when state revenues are falling short, leading to cuts in funding to education and other services.
School spokesman Mark Myers says the cuts will affect teachers on non-continuing contracts.
Officials anticipate class sizes will increase throughout the district, but stay within state-mandated classroom requirements.
Myers said the most recent information shows the district with 2,690 teachers and 45,648 students in the 2014-15 school year.
