The Delaware Valley School District on Wednesday reviewed the district's debt schedule and budget projections and heard a detailed presentation on cyber education enrollment and tuition costs that trustees said will shape this year's budget decisions.

In the superintendent's budget presentation, district business staff said the total principal and interest scheduled for 2025–26 is about $3.3 million, a reduction of roughly $10,000 from the current year if the board continues to use $200,000 from the district's internal service fund to offset debt service. The staff presentation shows the district currently budgets $200,000 annually from that fund through 2027–28 before available funds start to decline.

Why it matters: debt-service timing, internal reserves and outside-cyber tuition are key drivers of next year's budget gap. Trustees flagged the March 14 state funding update as a critical date for revenue clarity and discussed options to offset potential state shortfalls.

Board members then heard enrollment and cost details for the district's in-house cyber program and for students attending outside cyber charter schools. Jason Bourne, who presented the cyber report, said Delaware Valley Cyber Academy enrollment rose to 76 students this year after hitting a low of 56 last year; the proposed 2025–26 budget forecasts 70 seats. The board was told 26 new enrollments occurred at the start of semester 2 this year and that reasons for the uptick included medical documentation, mental-health and disciplinary circumstances.

By contrast, the district reported about 120 students currently enrolled in outside cyber programs. That outside-cyber population drives a substantial tuition expense: presenters told the board the state's funding formula forces the district to pay roughly $16,863 per regular‑education student when that student attends an outside cyber provider, while Delaware Valley's in‑house cyber costs approximately $4,250 per seat. For special‑education students the figures cited were about $32,250 paid to outside cyber providers versus about $4,225 if served by district programs. Presenters framed this as a structural mismatch that costs the district thousands of dollars per outside cyber pupil.

Board members pressed staff for details and options. Trustee Carl Well asked whether DB (Delaware Valley) Cyber permits flexible enrollments; staff said semester-based enrollment (fall and second semester openings) is meant to create clean grading windows but added that the district's vendor provides some enrollment flexibility and a short grace period for students who change their minds. Trustees asked staff to break out monthly reports showing how many students attend DV Cyber versus outside cyber; staff agreed to add that line item.

Trustees and administrators also discussed residency verification and billing disputes when outside cyber providers continue to bill the district for students who no longer live in the district. The board asked staff to explore tools, via the intermediate unit or other vendors, to verify student residency more efficiently.

Several trustees urged more active outreach to families considering outside cyber providers. One trustee proposed hiring a dedicated staff member or contracting a firm to investigate recruitment and retention strategies for DV Cyber; others said counselors and administrators already spend considerable time on such outreach and that legislative change to the state's cyber charter funding formula is the most effective remedy.

Other budget items presented: the district's materials showed $3.3 million in gross debt (about $2.88 million principal and $442,000 interest in 2025–26), and noted roughly $200,000 of that debt service is reimbursed by the state. Architecture and construction bids for a 2025 renovations package were presented to the board; trustees approved the bids as part of the approvals list (see Votes at a glance). The board also approved a set of 2024–25 budget transfers to cover projected overages in outside-cyber special education and other lines.

Staff and board members repeatedly cautioned that the final budget will depend on state funding decisions in March and on how many students remain in outside cyber programs.

Ending: Board members directed staff to return with monthly breakout data for in-district versus outside cyber enrollment, to explore residency‑verification solutions through the IU, and to keep the board informed of state funding changes before formal budget adoption in June.