A considerable number of schools are facing an unsustainable financial position, according to the Education Authority (EA).
An EA committee heard, overall, schools are expected to be £60m in the red in 2023/24.
Meanwhile, the head of Northern Ireland's biggest primary warned her budget will not cover paying staff.
Victoria Hutchinson from Strandtown Primary made the comments in a letter to parents.
The 2023-24 budget for education, which at about £2.5bn is Stormont's biggest behind health, was reduced by about £70m or 2.5%.
The overall budget to fund schools in Northern Ireland was also cut.
Each school is provided with an annual amount of funding from the Department of Education (DE), based mainly on the number of pupils it has.
The bulk of every school's budget is spent on paying for staff.
