Goochland County Public Schools leaders told the town hall they plan to request about $45,767,000 in county funding for FY2026 and described priorities that include staff compensation, career and technical education and instructional supports.

Meredith Moses, chair of the Goochland County School Board, noted system achievements — the division has five Apple Distinguished Schools, a 98 percent on-time graduation rate and statewide accreditation across all schools — and presented recent state assessment results: an 82 percent pass rate in English and an 83 percent pass rate in math on Standards of Learning exams.

Angela Allen, school board member and the school system’s budget presenter, summarized spending priorities and said the board planned a 3 percent cost-of-living raise for employees and targeted funds to expand English-as-a-second-language services and an EMT instructor position. “For our most important goal, we're spending a teeny tiny bit of money, dollars 95,000,” Allen said while explaining budget allocations tied to strategic goals and how carryovers and accounting treatment change optics for line items.

The school board said the county has tentatively offered an additional $300,000 to close some unfunded priorities; the school board will reconvene to decide allocation priorities if the county contribution is finalized. Board members emphasized the strength of the division’s career-and-technical-education programs (CTE), noting students have secured significant job offers and scholarship opportunities tied to those programs.

Ending: The school board will post the full budget documents online and continue discussions with the board of supervisors ahead of the county’s April budget adoption.