With an average daily membership (ADM) projected to be 9,662 students in the 2024-2025 school year, Augusta County School Board reviewed budget information at its regular meeting last night.
Gov. Glenn Youngkin presented a budget of more than $85 million in December 2023 for the Augusta County School‘s 2025 budget. The House has proposed a budget of $2.7 million more in the amount of $87,778,601 and the Senate a little more with more than $90 million.
“Hopefully, the assembly will adopt something that’s somewhere in between the House and the Senate’s version,” said Augusta County Schools Executive Director of Business and Finance Mark Lotts.
According to Augusta County Schools Superintendent Dr. Eric W. Bond, the school board earlier in the evening discussed “what path to take moving forward.” In budget work sessions, the school system will “take the middle of the road” and work with the House’s budget version for the school system.
The county school system’s projected expenditures for the next school year are $148,593,380 with revised revenue of $145,652,323 and no edits to the expected federal revenue for the county.
By the numbers, Bond said, the 2024-2025 budget is out of balance by $2.9 million, but includes a 4 percent salary increase for teachers and staff.
“We are waiting patiently for the General Assembly to pass their budget,” Bond said. He added that staff hopes by the next school board budget work session on March 21 to have more options to balance the budget.
Just before Thursday’s meeting ended, the school board received word that the Virginia General Assembly approved a budget for 2025 with 3 percent raises for teachers.
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Rebecca Barnabi
