About the Contributors

Ria Pai, Managing Editor
Ria (Class of 2020) is a Managing sports editor, who joined Voice at the beginning of her junior year. When she’s not writing and editing stories, Ria...

Gracia Hmelar, Managing Editor
Gracia (Class of 2020) is a Managing editor, who joined Voice at the beginning of her junior year. When not working on Voice, Gracia likes wearing sweaters,...



![Charen Yu (left), the Palo Alto Unified School District chief business officer, presents the updated 2026-2027 budget during Tuesday's board meeting. According to Yu, expenditure changes are the primary reason for the deficit. “[Compared to the adopted budget], certificated salaries are up $18.8 million (which translates to 13.4%), classified salaries are up $11 million (or 17%), benefits are up $5.6 million and all other objects are down $2.9 million,” Yu said. “These are settled agreements with our bargaining partners. They are contractual obligations and they are the primary driver of the change.”](https://palyvoice.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/budget-presentation-300x225.jpeg)

