By GREGG MONTGOMERY
WISH-TV | wishtv.com
Noblesville Schools announced Wednesday that it will implement targeted staffing reductions “in the coming weeks” to address significant financial challenges and a multimillion-dollar budget deficit.
The district aims to save more than $3 million in annual expenses through the staff reductions and other cost-cutting measures. Noblesville Schools touts itself as the Hamilton County city’s largest employer, with more than 1,800 employees.
A recent newsletter from the district in January highlighted financial concerns. A combination of increasing inflation, declining student enrollment, and Indiana’s property tax overhaul reduced annual funding and drove the district into a budget deficit.
The deficit comes as a local referendum that provides $25 million a year for operations and staffing is scheduled to expire at the end of 2026. Noblesville Schools has not announced plans for another referendum, although it said more information would be shared in the summer. A referendum could go on the ballot as soon as Nov. 3.
Noblesville in the fall semester recorded 10,104 students. The decline in student enrollment has happened due to lower birth rates and fewer school-age families living in Noblesville, the announcement said. It’s faced a trend of more students graduating than kindergarteners beginning school.
The drop in enrollment comes as the population for the area that the district serves has grown to 68,447 in 2024 from 64,343 in 2020, according to STATS Indiana.
District officials also cited the high cost of local housing. According to January figures from realty firm F.C. Tucker Co., Hamilton County had the highest year-to-date median home sale price in the central Indiana region at $458,990. Figures were not immediately available for Noblesville itself.
Additionally, the Noblesville announcement said, the state property tax overhaul passed in the 2025 legislature was expected to reduce funding to the district by “millions of dollars a year,” the announcement said.
District voters in 2018 approved a funding referendum that provides approximately $25 million annually for staff and operating expenses. The funds have been used to maintain competitive teacher salaries, school safety initiatives, mental health support, manageable class sizes, and academic and career technical programs.
Hile
Superintendent Dan Hile said the district is taking steps to address its issues before it becomes a “crisis.” Over the past year, the district has implemented several cost-saving measures, including “only modest” salary increases for teachers and staff, and the freezing of salary increases for school board members and administrative leaders. The district also has reduced several positions, renegotiated contracts, shifted equipment purchases, and implemented new technology efficiencies to maximize revenue generation.
Hile said in a statement in the release, “These efforts have been helpful, but they are not enough to address the gap we’re facing. Staffing is our highest ongoing cost and we must make adjustments there to realign with our current revenue.”
The announcement said the cuts will try to minimize impacts on students and use natural attrition, such as not backfilling positions when employees leave.
The district clarified that recent construction projects, such as the expansion of Noblesville High School, are not related to the operating deficit. The construction projects were funded through bonds and loans rather than classroom or referendum dollars. Hile explained that state laws govern how different types of school funding can be spent. “The construction projects were funded by bonds (loans) with no use of classroom or referendum dollars, while current financial challenges are related to ongoing operating expenses for staffing and education. The district is not legally allowed to use funds from one area to cover the other.”
Noblesville Schools financial highlights
Source: Noblesville Schools website
- 2026 certified assessed value $5,625,603,524 (5 percent increase).
- 2026 property tax rate $1.2510 per $100 of assessed value.
- Decreased tax rate for seventh year in a row.
- Credit rating AA.
- Standard and Poor’s credit rating ranks Noblesville Schools as a top four best finance district in the state.
- Debt is structured to have an aggressive payoff.
- Teacher salary range is $48,000-$93,000.
- Average daily membership (student count) for fall 2026: 10,104.
- Ten schools and five district buildings, 18 athletic fields, over 2 million building square feet, and 550 acres.
This story was originally published by WISH-TV at wishtv.com/news/education/noblesville-schools-to-cut-staff-and-expenses-to-address-budget-deficit.
