Finance committee sees slim enrollment dip, approves 26–27 building budgets and capital projects

WEST CHESTER, Pa. — The West Chester Area School District Property Finance Committee on Oct. 20 reviewed an updated budget forecast and enrollment projections, approved building-level funding allocations for 2026–27 and authorized a package of capital and capital-reserve projects.

Garrett Scully, presenting the finance forecast, said minor year-end adjustments added about $7,000 of federal revenue to the 2024–25 numbers and that the auditor’s review is expected to be complete by Oct. 31. Scully told the committee that a head-count reconciliation in October found about 2.7 more teachers than budgeted, increasing projected expenditures by roughly $227,000 for the current year but that other adjustments (benefit and medical trends, earned-income and investment earnings) produced net midyear savings on the order of several hundred thousand dollars.

Scully said the district’s multi-year deficit for the 2026–27 fiscal plan remains significant: "We still have $13,500,000 that we need in line with the expenditure savings and/or revenue projections," he said, describing that gap as the combination of two years of funding needs.

Enrollment projections showed a small decline.…