Richland 2 superintendent reports $127.4 million unaudited general-fund balance; 20 of 29 state-funded special-education positions filled

Superintendent Dr. Moore told the Richland School District Two Board of Trustees on Sept. 9 that the district is "a little over 28,000 students" and provided a monthly unaudited financial update for the general fund as of July 31, 2025.

The nut graf: The superintendent gave detailed revenue, expenditure and fund-balance figures intended to show the board how the district is positioned for the fiscal year. Dr. Moore highlighted local and state revenue receipts, the district's cash investments and the board-approved plan to use assigned fund balance for one-time needs, and answered board questions about using reserves for strategic priorities.

Dr. Moore said the district's total enrollment is "a little over 28,000 students," with a student population that the presentation showed as 63.2% African American, about 14% white, roughly 14% Hispanic and 2.6% Asian. The district reported 12.3% of students with Individualized Education Programs in PowerSchool (Dr. Moore noted the number is rising as more students are identified) and a pupils-in-poverty rate of 64.3%.

On finances, Dr. Moore reported that the district's unaudited general-fund balance as of July 31, 2025, was $127,356,366, or approximately 31% of the general-fund budget (about 3.7 months of expenditures). He summarized the statutory and policy thresholds the district monitors: state law requires roughly one month (about 8.33%), board policy requires at least two months (about 16.66%), and bond-rating agencies look for roughly 20%.

Dr. Moore presented revenue detail for July: the district had received $1,941,318 in local property-tax revenue (1.4% of anticipated local revenue as of that report) and about $13,000,189,187 from state sources in the year-to-date column shown to the board (presented as about 8% of anticipated state revenue). He also described transfers from state education-improvement funds and noted July expenditures were low for salary and fringe because of the payroll timing for 245-day and 225-day employees.

The superintendent described the district's investment posture: most cash is held in the South Carolina Local Government Investment Pool (LGIP), where state funding is funneled and withdrawn as needed, and some maturing certificates of deposit will be reinvested to seek higher returns.

On human resources and special education, Dr. Moore told the board that the budget this year included 29 additional special-education positions approved by the board; as of the Sept. 9 update the district had filled 20 of those 29 positions. He said the district continues active recruitment for speech-language pathologists, academic interventionists, school counselors and psychologists.

Facilities and operations figures shown to the board included: more than 12,000 work orders completed over the summer (over 2,000 were HVAC work orders), replacement of 550 toilet-paper and paper-towel dispensers, and 972 gallons of floor wax applied. On nutrition and transportation, Dr. Moore reported the district had served more than 6,600 breakfast meals and over 14,000 lunches per day so far in the school year and said transportation specialists had driven a total distance equivalent to "8.9 trips to the moon," citing the 238,855-mile figure used for a single lunar trip.

Board member Tamika Washington asked how the board should think about using fund balance. Dr. Moore responded that fund balance can be used only for one-time costs (not recurring salaries) and that recommendations for the board would come during the next budget season.

Why it matters: The figures Dr. Moore reported bear directly on the district's ability to maintain services, respond to enrollment and poverty trends, and meet board and bond-rater liquidity expectations. The SPED hiring update affects classroom coverage and compliance with state special-education requirements.

The superintendent made the presentation available in BoardDocs and asked board members to review the posted financial charts and the monthly unaudited numbers, noting the district's audit is ongoing and numbers may be adjusted when that process completes.