Santa Rosa City School officials making six figures despite massive budget issues.

A major California school district is teetering on the verge of collapse after spending and hiring spiraled out of control.

Santa Rosa City Schools, about 1.5 hours north of San Francisco, was reprimanded by Sonoma County education administrators for wasting cash.

Authorities said employees saw bumper pay packages and brought in too many new workers for the revenue they were generating.

Meanwhile, the district saw student enrollment drop from 16,000 in 2016 to less than 12,000 last year across the district’s 24 schools.

In a stark warning, Michael Fine, chief executive of the Administrative Assistance and Financial Crisis Team, told the school at a January board meeting: “You have some serious cash issues.”

“Much more dangerous than any other area in the state. I don’t understand why you don’t always have the money,” he added.

The head of the teachers union also stormed the district, claiming it had made temporary fixes to systemic problems in schools.

“It’s a house of cards, it seems to me,” Catherine Howell said. The main focus of investigators was hiring employees with huge salaries while enrollment had declined over the past decade.

California school districts earn money based on the number of students they enroll, but the district’s numbers have steadily declined over the past five years.

Despite this, the top tier of Santa Rosa city school officials made more than $1 million combined, the newspaper reveals.

Lisa August Holm, now interim superintendent of Santa Rosa City Schools, has a base salary of $261,537.

This represents the 90th percentile of superintendents in California and is closer to salaries in larger districts with more than 20,000 students.

Other top earners include Dr. Vicki Zands, an assistant superintendent who earns more than $222,000 annually after benefits.

Roderick M. Castro, assistant superintendent of teaching and learning, earned total pay of $243,410.60.

Stacy A. Desideri, executive director of wellness and engagement, received total compensation of $198,000.

The 2025-2026 Santa Rosa City Schools Department salary schedule also reveals above-average pay for various positions including $170,000 for high school principal, with the California average being $135,000.

Other factors also kept students away from their classrooms. At Montgomery High School, a 16-year-old student was stabbed by another student in 2023.

Jayden Jess Pinta was stabbed with a knife in a classroom and later died at a Santa Rosa hospital.

The district also struggled with budget problems after losing a large number of students during COVID and wildfires in 2017, which burned more than 5,600 structures and killed 22 people.

Due to budget issues, some district executives have taken pay cuts to try to help overcome the budget shortfall.

Calls for comment on Santa Rosa City Schools were not immediately returned.

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