Following a roughly three-hour joint meeting Tuesday night on the school division’s proposed FY2027 budget, Mathews School Board members and county supervisors didn’t appear to come to an agreement about what the county’s share of that budget should be.
In the meeting in the Brooks Auditorium at Thomas Hunter Middle School, superintendent of schools Dr. David S. Daniel presented a second draft of his proposed budget that would reduce the salary increase for teachers and other staff from 2 percent plus step to 1 percent (maintaining a 6 percent raise for teacher assistants), eliminating the proposed athletic trainer position and other measures—all to get the budget to level funding from the county at approximately $9.1 million. His original budget proposal called for roughly $9.4 million in county funds.
However, County Administrator Ramona Wilson indicated that her draft budget calls for only $8.5 million contributed by the county for schools, well below the amount being sought by the division. Cuts were also made throughout the county budget to avoid a tax increase. “I have cut positions to make the budget balance,” she said.
Supervisor Tim Doss seemed to want to pin Daniel down on what programs or services the division might cut in order to meet the lower county contribution. Daniel declined to get into specifics. “That then generates a level of panic or concern … I don’t want to start that in motion if we don’t need to,” he said.
Daniel did include a number of general ways he would propose reducing the school budget in the packet of information on the joint meeting, including passing on more of the cost of health insurance, no furniture replacement budget, cancelling summer school, and removing stipends for low-participation sports/clubs/activities.
Over the past three years, in response to declining enrollment, the division has reduced full- and part-time staff by 41 positions. At present, the division has 157 full-time and 26 part-time employees.
Daniel’s draft was based on an Average Daily Membership of 725 students. His overall draft budget already anticipates a decline of roughly $320,000 in lower state revenues; overall, a $15.6 million budget.
Members of the two boards spoke at length about a number of issues related to the school system, from student performance to textbook adoption to transportation and free meals being provided by the division through the USDA’s Community Eligibility Program. Daniel said that 43 percent of the students in the county are Direct Certified, with families receiving assistance from a number of programs such as SNAP and TANF. The boards also spoke about the rising Local Composite Index (the state’s formula for school funding) that has been placing a greater burden on the locality to pick up its own cost for education.
The two boards had tentatively agreed to hold a second joint work session on the budget this coming Tuesday. However, that meeting was cancelled. “I just don’t see any benefit for us to meet on the third” of March, Doss said.
Instead, the two boards’ chairs and vice chairs will hold a leadership meeting on March 11, the day after supervisors will hold a work session on the county’s budget.
At the conclusion of Tuesday’s meeting, Dr. Mari Gibbs, the school board chair, said: “I just wanted to remind the citizens and all board members that there are five board members on this side [referring to the school board members] who do vote to approve a budget. So, if we’re backing into a number, we may or may not be able to with integrity approve that budget going across. We need a series of conversations. We need more information.
“This board is made up of five individuals who as Dr. Daniel said sees things through different lenses and they can vote yes or no. Our job is to ensure the integrity of the school system to help our students achieve. And if we’ve gone past the point of allowing that to happen or if that is at risk to too great of an extent, individual members will make the decisions that they make on that. We are not one body; we are five people voting.
“We’re facing some serious discussions here,” she said.
The complete joint meeting can be found on the school board’s YouTube channel, and Daniel’s presentation can be found on the school board’s Board Docs page. Links to both are available on the county school website (www.mathews.k12.va.us), looking at the school board page.
The work session was held after a public hearing on the budget proposal. No one from the public (other than members of the two boards and staff) was in attendance and no comments were received.
The school board is expected to adopt its budget at its Tuesday, March 17 meeting, at which point, the budget will be in the hands of county supervisors for final action.