Epic Charter Schools announces layoffs, citing decline in enrollment

"Dear EPIC Families,

There’s no question that COVID-19 brought new families into our school both in the way of students and staff. At the height of the pandemic, our enrollment ballooned to nearly 61,000 kids, but now that life is returning to normal, we have seen an expected decline in enrollment.

Three out of five kids who came to EPIC due to the pandemic have chosen to return to their home districts, but approximately two out of five have chosen to stay at EPIC.

For those of you who have chosen to stay with us: thank you. We are honored to serve your kids, and we’re proud to have come through such difficult days with your help and support. Serving our students fully and efficiently is at the heart of all we do, and that’s why we now have some difficult decisions to make in terms of staffing.

We want to provide transparency, so I’m writing to let you know that we have begun the process of right-sizing our operations through a reduction in force (RIF).

This process began on Friday and will continue this month; we anticipate operations will normalize by the end of the current school year. We are being proactive in our planning. Our goal through this process is to create the least amount of disruption to our students.

This is a painful time, but it’s critical that we build long-term stability and viability into our organization so we can continue serving kids for generations to come.

We will keep you apprised of future developments. We ask for your patience, and we thank you for choosing EPIC for your family.

Sincerely,

Bart Banfield
Superintendent, EPIC Charter Schools"