Jefferson County School Board adopts FY2025–26 budget amid concerns about staff pay and nurse coverage

The Jefferson County School Board voted 6-0 to adopt the fiscal year 2025–26 school budget as presented, concluding a roughly 30-minute discussion about line-item detail, staffing and benefits, and federal-grant budgeting.

Board members said the approved spending plan relies on standard state chart-of-accounts groupings and includes federal grant funds and restricted student-nutrition funds. Director (name not specified) and school finance staff answered questions about items listed under “other” and explained how subobjects and cost centers break down specific expenses.

The board discussion focused on three recurring concerns: what is included in object-category “other” spending, how federal grant funds are budgeted and amended through the year, and whether current staffing levels — particularly school nurses and lower-paid hourly employees such as teacher aides and custodians — are sustainable.

Director (name not specified) told the board that payroll entries categorized as object 189 include positions such as tutors and homebound teachers and that coaching supplements and retiree-service incentive pay also appear in the roll-up for that object. “We pay our tutors out of 189,” the Director said. Finance staff explained that the district follows the state chart of accounts and that subobjects on the budget printout identify the specific group or contract when needed.

On federal funds, finance staff said those line items represent grants the district currently has or expects and that federal budgeting is a “guess” that will be adjusted through budget amendments during the year as grant awards change. Student nutrition (fund 143) is a restricted fund; the budget shows a planned use of fund balance of about $1,000,000 for that program.

Board members pressed for detail about contracted services listed under object 399. Finance staff said object 399 covers any contracted services with standing contracts, including copier leases and mailing machines, school athletic trainers (the Knoxville Orthopedic Clinic was named as a contracted athletic-training provider), HVAC vendors, grounds maintenance and other contractors. Staff said the SRO (school resource officer) grant covers one SRO at the high school; the second SRO position at the high school is funded outside that specific grant.

Several board members raised staffing and compensation concerns. One board member said the big worry is employees leaving for higher pay elsewhere and urged the board to press the county commission for more resources. That board member said: “I think at some point, we need to go to the county commission and just tell them…we need the money to be able to do it.”

Other board discussion detailed recent pay changes for hourly employees: staff reported that employees with five to nine years of service received an additional $0.50 per hour on top of a 3.5 percent raise this year; custodians with long tenure received larger increases (staff cited a $2/hour increase for an employee with 30-plus years). Finance staff said those hourly bumps cost roughly $160,000 this year. The board also noted teachers are paid on 200-day contracts; staff illustrated that a $65,000 salary on a 200-day contract is not directly comparable to a 260-day annual salary in other professions.

On school nursing, staff said each elementary and middle school has one nurse and the high school has two; the district uses substitute nurses for planned and some unexpected absences and has two part-time substitute nurses available. The nursing supervisor also provides coverage when schools are short. “We only have so many positions,” the Director said, adding that staff sometimes rotate employees between schools to ensure coverage.

After discussion, a motion to adopt the budget as presented was put to a voice/show-of-hands vote; the tally was recorded as six in favor, none opposed. The board chair declared the motion passed.

The board did not take further formal action during the meeting to request additional county funding; members instead recorded concerns and requested clarifications that staff addressed during the discussion. Finance staff said the district will use standard procedures to post and amend grant-funded line items during the fiscal year.

The budget as adopted will govern Jefferson County Schools’ spending for fiscal year 2025–26; staff indicated the district expects to be balanced by next July under the presented plan.