Waynesboro Schools prepare for 2025 budget season with hope of more state funding

In a presentation of Waynesboro Schools’ proposed 2024-2025 operating budget, the school system is short more than $700,000.

Superintendent Dr. Jeff Cassell told school board members Tuesday night that he hopes for additional state funding to compensate for the difference.

All in all, however, the school system is looking at a good budget year, despite the loss of CARES Act funding.

Cassell said employee compensation and student needs remain priorities for Waynesboro.

School systems in Virginia receive state funding based on average daily membership (ADM). With a current enrollment of 3,063 students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade, 48 percent of Waynesboro Schools’ students identify as white, 21 percent as Hispanic and 18 percent as black.

“We’re a very diverse school system, ethnically and racially,” Cassell said.

He said the last couple of years, school staff have created a budget based on an ADM of 2,825.

In 2024, 56.9 percent of students were economically disadvantaged, and currently the student has 61 percent of students who are economically disadvantaged. With a high economically disadvantaged population, the school system qualifies by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to receive free or reduced lunches for all students, regardless of income.

According to Cassell, the number of students with special needs in the school system has increasing, as is the number of homeless.

Educators, administrators and staff are using a new term in education: Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education, also known as SLIFE. Many are immigrant students or refugees.

School systems in Virginia rely on funding from the federal government, the Commonwealth of Virginia and local funding.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s proposed budget in December 2023 provides a 1 percent bonus for Standards of Quality staff funding, cuts funding for Valley Academy by $53,000 and cuts funding for incentive programs by $2.2 million.

Cassell said Waynesboro Schools expects to receive $1 million more in city funding than last year based upon 2023 city revenue.

Waynesboro Schools will receive state funding reimbursement for providing resources for students with special needs who formerly attended Pygmalion School in Staunton, which closed in December.

“So, we’ll be able to serve those students through our own program,” Cassell said.

State funding for the school system for 2025 is expected to increase by $900,000 from last year to $26,186,269. Federal funding is expected to increase by $88,000 to $2.9 million. City funding is expected to be $19,838,000.

The school system’s total expected revenue is $50,190,915, but expected expenditures are $50,895,939. Operating budget for 2023-1024 was $48,680,529.

Cassell said the school board wants 4 percent raises for teachers, but additional state funding will be necessary to make that happen.

Waynesboro Schools partner with Staunton Schools and Augusta County Schools on various school programs and resources.

“But, when it comes to hiring, it’s everybody for themselves,” Cassell said.

The Virginia General Assembly is scheduled to present House and Senate versions of the proposed budget Sunday, February 18.

“I’m optimistic that this year the House and Senate budgets may be closer to each other,” Cassell said of both the Virginia House and Virginia Senate being mostly the same political party, which is Democrat.

However, school staff may not receive state budget funding numbers in time to present to the school board at its next regular meeting on Tuesday, March 12. Cassell must present a proposed, balanced budget to the city of Waynesboro by Monday, March 25, 2024.

Waynesboro School Board Chair Debra Freeman said that the school board hopes this budget season the Commonwealth is able to provide a much quicker budget to school systems than last year. In July 2023, when the fiscal school year for 2023-2024 had already begun, school systems had yet to receive a final budget from Virginia.