Lakeland board previews structurally balanced FY25-26 budget; plans K–12 staffing, raises and district-office reorganization

Superintendent Dr. Horrell presented the Lakeland School System’s proposed FY25-26 budget at the board work session and said it is a “structurally balanced budget, with no budgeted use of fund balance.” The draft funds the district’s first full K–12 year, supports an estimated enrollment of 2,646 students and will be carried to next week’s discussion action agenda as item No. 1.

The proposal matters because Lakeland is shifting from a K–8 model to a fully staffed K–12 district; Dr. Horrell told the board that change requires new district-office roles and more school-based staff. The budget frames the district’s priorities — continued investment in teacher pay, additional instructional and student-support positions, and modest central-office growth to match the district’s enrollment increase.

Dr. Horrell said projected general fund revenues total about $32,000,008.51 and described the proposal as “almost $33,000,000 in revenues and expenses” as a practical summary. She attributed roughly $18.5 million to the state’s Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement program (TISA) and said Shelby County support and local sources combine to reach the total. The superintendent said the projection represents a 9 percent total revenue increase and includes an estimated $2.6 million growth from the prior year.

Key budget items and constraints cited during the presentation: - Enrollment and funding timing: Dr. Horrell emphasized that state and county funding are calculated on prior-year counts. Rapid student growth in recent years meant Lakeland often served students before full funding for those pupils arrived; she said the district has relied on conservative estimates and avoided tapping fund balance in this draft. - Teacher compensation: The budget continues a multi-year focus on teacher pay, including a proposed 3 percent increase to the teacher salary schedule. Dr. Horrell said that represents roughly a 16 percent increase in the teacher salary schedule since the K–8 starting point, measured as the 10-month starting salary. - Bonuses: The budget includes bonus payments that are partially funded by state legislation. “We will be clear, verbally and in writing, this budget does include bonus payments to all staff. But I am noting here that is subsidized by the Tennessee legislature,” Dr. Horrell said. She explained teachers defined by the state’s legislation will receive $2,000 per the state program; staff who previously received a $1,000 certified/central-office bonus will retain at least that amount, and a clarified lower tier payment was confirmed during the meeting as $750 for certain staff categories. - Benefits and operating costs: The draft assumes a 0 percent increase in employee health insurance premiums for the coming year, which Dr. Horrell and finance staff said was achieved through the interlocal health committee. Transportation was budgeted with up to 3 percent inflation in a high-cost routing scenario, producing an estimated $1.0–$1.2 million transportation line. - Technology and devices: The budget includes recurring device refresh cycles (Chromebook replacement every three years) and a technology systems manager position. Dr. Horrell said managed technology devices and filtering responsibilities have grown with enrollment. - District-office restructuring and new positions: To match K–12 operational needs, the draft reorganizes titles and reporting lines and proposes three chief roles (chief of human resources, chief of finance, chief of technology) reporting directly to the superintendent. Most supervisor positions would be retitled to director level. Two net-new central-office positions that were highlighted are a director of career and technical education (CTE) and special programs and a grades 9–12 director of instruction; the board discussion emphasized that many other role changes are retitles or internal reassignments rather than all-new hires. - School staffing additions: The presentation listed multiple new school-level positions, chiefly on the high school side: English, math, science and social studies teachers; a gifted teacher; a functional skills and special education assistant; a study-hall assistant; a second school counselor; assistant band director; nutrition technicians; elementary and middle-school interventionists; and additional custodial and HVAC support. Dr. Horrell said the HVAC hire was expected to be budget-neutral compared with contracted services. - Other funds and programs: Federal programs and school nutrition were each described as about $1 million budgets; LEAP (before- and after-school care) was listed at roughly $280,000. Capital project spending was flagged as higher than projected capital funding from Memphis–Shelby County capital allocations for this year, and Dr. Horrell noted capital funds from the county are prorated per student across county systems. - External contract payments: The superintendent confirmed contractual payments continue to Arlington Community Schools (ACS) under the current agreement. The board noted the FY24–25 payment for Lakeland students attending ACS was about $79,063 and that the FY25–26 draft budgets $40,000 for such payments, which Dr. Horrell described as likely conservative.

Board members asked clarifying questions about which staff counts were included in charts (Dr. Horrell confirmed the growth figures did not include coaches or substitute staff) and emphasized that some central-office positions will move to 12-month schedules to allow more strategic summer work. Finance director Tristan Gaitley Sweat was credited for the data visualizations and conservative revenue estimates; Dr. Horrell thanked him for his work on the first budget he led since joining the district.

Next steps: The board agreed to carry the FY25-26 budget to next week’s discussion agenda, with salary schedules and stipend schedules also scheduled for review. The budget documents and presentation will be attached to next week’s public agenda for further board review and comment.

Dr. Horrell closed the overview by reiterating priorities for the budget: supporting teachers and school-based staff while making limited, targeted expansions to the district office to match the responsibilities of a full K–12 system.