Although numbers have still yet to be finalized for the division’s current 2023-2024 budget, members of the Mathews County School Board and Board of Supervisors sat down Tuesday to begin discussions about the following year’s budgetSuperintendent of Schools Dr. David S. Daniel also gave the two boards a picture of where Mathews is now in terms of staffing, enrollment, academic performance, and other issues. The meeting, which was held in the Brooks Auditorium at Thomas Hunter Middle School, operated under a time constraint, as supervisors needed to leave to attend a public hearing with the Mathews County Planning Commission.

Daniel began with what he called a “State of the Union/State of the School System” overview. He gave a brief breakdown on the current budget, which has the bulk of its money (68.4 percent) going to teacher salaries and other instructional needs.

That budget, he said, was based on an Average Daily Membership of 875, although current attendance is well below t...