Report: FCPS superintendent says he will take pay cut amid district finance problems
Fayette Superintendent Demetrus Liggins says he is taking a 10% pay cut to his base salary amid recent revelations of the district’s financial problems, according to a report from WKYT, the Herald-Leader’s news partner.
“I share that not because it lessens the hardship faced by those experiencing far greater employment impacts, nor to compare sacrifices” Liggins said, according to WKYT, “but because I believe leaders should never ask others to bear burdens they are unwilling to shoulder themselves.”
Several people — the district won’t say how many — were laid off at FCPS’ Central Office Tuesday after Liggins announced in April the district has had faulty accounting practices dating back to 2008 that are causing new budget strife. The severity of the problems has led interim Chief Financial Officer Kyna Koch to recommend that the district get a short-term loan to pay its expenses.
Liggins’ total compensation was $381,767 in the 2024-2025 school year, including pension and benefits, district spokesperson Miranda Scully previously told the Herald-Leader.
In a statement Friday, district spokesperson Miranda Scully said this information hadn’t been shared widely with FCPS staff yet.
“The communication referenced in recent media coverage was part of an early stakeholder update shared with a limited group of community partners as broader communications were still being finalized. We want to clarify that Dr. Liggins has not yet shared this information with staff directly,” Scully said in reference to Liggins’ comments. “It remains our priority to communicate with employees first whenever possible, and we intend to maintain our plan to provide staff with a comprehensive update next week.”
Much criticism from lawmakers and citizens has been levied at Liggins for his handling of district finances since last year.
Reviews of FCPS budgeting have also found issues.
In February, an attorney hired by the Fayette County School Board to investigate Liggins’ role in tending to district finances found multiple policy violations by the superintendent.
The report found that Liggins failed to comply with two policy obligations, as well as board governance while the board was in a budget crisis.
Another review from an outside firm, focused on staff who reported to Liggins, found “systemic” problems with the way FCPS runs its finances.
The most recent revelations about FPCS’ finance issues resulted in employees in the finance department being put on leave pending an investigation, Liggins and Koch announced in April.
KY Center for Economic Policy report
Jason Bailey, executive director of the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, on Sept. 30 issued a report on FCPS budget problems and an issue he thinks is missing from the debate.
“While there may legitimate concerns about fiscal transparency in the district, the financial pressures that led to the current controversy started at the state level,“ Bailey wrote. “Diminishing state education investment in the context of rapidly rising costs and the loss of federal COVID funds is the critical but missing financial context for the controversy at FCPS.”
Missing from the discussion is the role state education budget cuts played in helping create the situation, Bailey’s report said.
“If state lawmakers had simply restored funding for the core K-12 formula Support Educational Excellence in Kentucky (SEEK) to its inflation-adjusted 2008 levels, FCPS would have $76 million more per year by 2028, a number that far exceeds the projected $16 million shortfall that began the controversy,” the report said.
This story was originally published May 1, 2026 at 1:03 PM.