Minneapolis Public Schools faces a budget deficit in 2026-27 that is significantly deeper than initially forecast — and is relying on new and familiar faces to help it dig out of the hole.

Ryan Strack, the district’s senior executive officer, took the lead in presenting its latest budget update last week, and the school system has hired an outside consulting firm — at a cost of up to $830,000 — to provide technical and operational support.

There’s a strong need for a finance division rebound.

Ibrahima Diop, the former public face of the budget process, left Minnesota’s third-largest district on Jan. 30 — months after being reprimanded and then subjected to “escalated disciplinary action” by Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams.

Documents obtained by the Minnesota Star Tribune in a public data request also show the district ordered an outside review of the finance division that described it as being at a “crisis point” with significant employee turnover — reportedly more than 50% over the past two years — and poor morale.

“Staggering,” Sayles-Adams wrote of the findings in her correspondence with Diop.

The consultant’s report was issued last August, and on Tuesday, Feb. 10, Strack took center stage for the latest budget update. While the update showed the district’s projected general fund deficit rising from $30.3 million in December to $50.5 million, Strack and the finance team were commended for bringing depth and transparency to the process.

Budget cuts loom. So, too, does a so-called district “transformation process” that could lead to the closing or merging of schools in a system plagued with excess building space.

Sondra Samuels, president of the Northside Achievement Zone, a nonprofit serving low-income families, told school board members in January that the district must be upfront with its budget numbers, especially when times are tough and its neediest students could suffer.

“When the district gets a cold, North Side children get COVID,” Samuels said.

Samuels spoke about a week after the Minnesota Reformer, quoting unnamed sources, reported that Diop and two other finance officials — Tariro Chapinduka, executive director of finance, and controller Aaron Gilbert — had been placed on administrative leave.

In response to a data request, the school district told the Star Tribune that Chapinduka, whose annual salary is $174,074, and Gilbert, who is paid $146,974, each faced one complaint and said both probes remained open. Details in such cases are private unless disciplinary action is taken, under the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act.

Diop, whose annual salary was $221,408, was in the process of joining Milwaukee Public Schools as its deputy superintendent of operations, but Milwaukee reversed course after the Minnesota Reformer story was published, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.

Minneapolis Public Schools told the Star Tribune that Diop faced three complaints and that each was closed. The district provided copies of a written reprimand and a final warning, and also noted Diop’s Jan. 30 “separation” from the district — without saying whether it was voluntary or not.

Diop did not reply to a message from the Star Tribune.

In May 2025, Diop received a written reprimand from Sayles-Adams for an alleged Data Practices Act violation. Then in a second reprimand, he was accused of insubordination for allegedly failing to meet an assigned deadline for the corrective action and delegating work that Sayles-Adams told him to do personally.

Diop also was placed on a performance improvement program that included developing a written plan to identify and track the potential 2026-27 budget gap, among other measures.

Finally, Sayles-Adams detailed four performance concerns tied in part to alleged errors in budget reporting — she offered no specifics — and “inadequate oversight in high-liability areas,” as well as the results of the external review of the finance division.

Sayles-Adams, quoting from the report, wrote that “serious concerns ranging from staffing crises (and resultant risks to operations) were brought to [you] without any apparent or effective efforts to correct the problems or apparent accountability for poorly behaving managers.”

Sepler & Associates, the firm that conducted the review, concluded that incremental steps were insufficient to stop what it described as a downward spiral.

“There is a critical need for the district to ensure that there is active operational and people leadership on the ground, present and focused on immediate repair and culture change,” the report states.

“There must be an expectation that the operating principles of psychological safety, collaborative decision making and process implementation be the guiding forces for change, and that behavior that deviates from those principles be immediately addressed.”

When asked to respond to the report, the school district wrote: “A positive and supportive workplace culture is vital for MPS employees so they can perform at their best and meaningfully contribute to MPS’ overall success for the benefit of MPS students.

“MPS is working within the finance division to address the concerns identified in the report.”

Strack, who has served as the superintendent’s liaison to the school board, has been tapped along with several other district leaders to provide leadership support to the finance division, the district said in a statement.

In last week’s budget presentation, Strack cited rising fringe and benefit costs, recent contract settlements and payments to employees working beyond their normal contract days as being among the factors driving the projected budget gap from $30.3 million to $50.5 million.

The budget must be approved by June 15.

“This process is dynamic,” Strack added. “Things are going to change.”

Board members faced with tough choices ahead raised no concerns about the budget changes. They instead applauded the thoroughness of the update from Strack and other members of the budget team.

“We really just appreciate you keeping focus and your nose to the grindstone,” board Chair Collin Beachy said. “It’s just too important.”

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