COLUMBUS (WCMH) — Tuesday night, Columbus City Schools started tackling controversial budget cuts. The district said it needs to trim more than $21 million from the 2018-2019 budget.

Everyone agrees cuts have to happen, but deciding what should go, including potentially more than 150 jobs, sparked a lot of debate at the first meeting.

Proposed layoffs have Columbus 4th grade teacher Angel Dyer-Sanchez concerned.

“I have to believe there has to be more out there they can do instead of just slicing teachers off the top,” she said.

Dyer-Sanchez and many other district employees were in the audience as the District and the School Board started the emotional and tedious process of debating what should be slashed from the budget.

“Everything here is important everything here helps our kids,” said School Board member Dominic Paretti.

163 district jobs are on the chopping block as well as program, materials, transportation and technology cuts.

Columbus School Board President Gary Baker puts all the blame on the state.

“It’s incredibly frustrating and it’s the only reason why we’re having this conversation and so the fact that the state’s not able or not willing to fully fund public education it’s a challenge and it’s a real issue,” said President Baker.

He said the state’s cap on funding leaves the District more than $100 million dollars short of its needs and said it’s families who suffer.“We have to go back to our local voters more often than we would otherwise if the state of Ohio actually fully funded education,” he said.

President Baker said the District isn’t in crisis… yet. He said some tough decisions have to be made.

To weigh in on the budget debate visit: http://www.ccsoh.us/protected/ArticleView.aspx?iid=42BY2&dasi=10

The district hopes to have decided cuts by the end of March.