WJCC reports $6.4 million preliminary surplus; CFO recommends $4.5 million health reserve and $650,000 textbook fund

The Williamsburg-James City County School Division reported a preliminary, unaudited operating-year surplus of approximately $6.4 million for fiscal year 2025, and Chief Financial Officer Renee Ewing recommended the board commit most of that amount to two reserves that administrators say would shore up division finances.

Ewing told the school board the division’s “actual revenue for the year is 183,100,000,” about $2.3 million above the adopted budget, and its expenditures plus open encumbrances totaled about $176.7 million, leaving roughly $6.4 million remaining after year-end adjustments.

Ewing said the surplus results from two primary sources: $2.3 million in higher-than-budgeted revenue (including stronger sales-tax and interest receipts and timing of impact-aid reimbursements) and roughly $4.1 million in expenditure savings, “$2,800,000 came from salary and benefit savings primarily due to open positions and natural attrition.” She cautioned the figures are preliminary and subject to change after the external audit.

To respond to a recent change to a self-funded health insurance model, Ewing recommended committing $4.5 million of the surplus to a health care reserve to cover unexpectedly high claims and reimbursement delays. She said $4.5 million represents about two months of estimated claims for the initial plan year and noted that industry guidance favors three months.

Ewing also recommended setting aside $650,000 to a textbook fund to better manage the cyclical cost of instructional-material adoptions. She noted the division’s adopted operating budget currently includes $250,000 annually for textbooks, which she said is “not sufficient to cover upcoming adoption cycles.”

If the board adopts the recommendations, Ewing said roughly $1.2 million would be returned to the local funding partners: $1,100,000 to James City County and $127,000 to the City of Williamsburg. She added James City County plans to use $1,000,000 of the returned funds to support its fiscal year 2026 budget.

Board members asked clarifying questions about the return amounts and about timing of final state entitlements. Ewing explained final state revenue is determined from the average daily membership count in March with confirmations in April, which limits the division’s ability to program additional spending before year-end.

No board action on these recommendations was recorded in the meeting minutes; Ewing said the full June financial report will return on a future agenda after the audit.

Why this matters: The proposed reserves would shift one-time year-end funds into recurring financial safeguards during the division’s transition to a self-funded health plan and to stabilize cyclical textbook purchases.

What’s next: The division will complete its external audit, include the full June financial report on the next board agenda for review, and the board could act then on the recommended fund commitments.