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Gloucester School Board adopts 2025 budget with pay raises, trims $80,000 in signage
Summary
The Gloucester County School Board approved its 2025 fiscal plan on May 13, 2025, approving a 4.5% salary increase systemwide and other investments while amending the package to remove $80,000 in planned signage for three schools. Board members flagged reliance on staff attrition and uncertain grant revenues as risks.
The Gloucester County School Board on May 13 approved its fiscal 2025 budget package, including a 4.5% pay increase for employees and funding for targeted school and district programs, after amending the proposal to remove $80,000 in signage for three schools.
Superintendent Doctor Vladeau told the board that “it takes money to educate kids,” while presenting the spending priorities that the administration said would sustain personnel, health-insurance obligations and classroom supports. The board voted to adopt the budget after a late amendment to strip the signage allocation and explicit direction to furnish additional cost detail for a new health-care–connected course.
The adopted plan funds a 4.5% across‑the‑board pay increase, raises starting bus driver pay to $20 an hour, preserves central programs and adds targeted positions the administration described as needed for student supports. The board also confirmed an annual bonus funded by the General Assembly, proposing an initial $600 per full‑time qualifying employee subject to final year‑end numbers.
Board discussion focused on tradeoffs. Several members supported the raises and a modest number of new or converted positions; others warned that the budget relied heavily on position attrition and projected grant or unanticipated revenue. Board members asked staff to return with clearer estimates of recurring costs tied to new courses and a fuller accounting of remaining fund balances before the next fiscal cycle.
The board also asked the chair and vice chair to work with the superintendent to schedule three additional work sessions between now and January to allow deeper review of policies, the budget and strategic presentations.
What the vote did and did not do: The board approved the budget as amended; it approved the pay‑plan adjustments (including bus driver pay) and authorized staff to proceed with implementation. The board asked staff for a final accounting and cost breakdowns for any program proposed to rely on grant funding.
Looking ahead: Finance staff will publish an updated year‑end projection and provide the board with a line‑by‑line estimate of ongoing costs for newly approved programs before the next budget cycle. The board signaled it may revisit priorities if projected savings from attrition do not materialize.
