Goochland school leaders ask county for 5.9% transfer increase as budget workshop highlights pay, interventions and state policy changes

Goochland County School Board staff on Jan. 21 presented a budget package that requests a 5.9% increase in the county transfer—about $1,655,000—and flagged multiple cost pressures and program priorities for fiscal 2026, including teacher pay competitiveness, expanded academic intervention staffing in elementary schools, and costs tied to a recently passed state law on dual enrollment.

The request and program details were delivered during a budget workshop at the County Administration Building. Miss Weiss, a staff member presenting the finance slides, said the division will seek the county transfer increase to cover a 3% salary initiative, several operating shifts from the capital improvement plan and to hold the division harmless for certain technology contracts funded in the prior year.

Why it matters: the package would change what services the division can sustain next year and responds to new state requirements and local shifts that affect both revenue and expenses. Board members focused on staffing to support literacy and math in early grades, teacher and staff compensation, and a range of one-time and recurring cost items that the division says must be resolved during county negotiations.

Top priorities and new local revenue

Staff highlighted a set of modest local revenue changes to help narrow the gap. Miss Weiss said the division will increase the tuition charged to out-of-county students from $5,000 to $6,000 and raise the county-employee dependent tuition from $1,000 to $1,200. The division projects about 12 out-of-county students and about four county-staff students under those categories; the combined revenue impact was presented as $76,800 after staff clarified an initial arithmetic discrepancy.

Miss Weiss also said the division will charge a $125 fee for each student attending two summer enrichment camps (STEM and fine arts), generating an estimated…