Forsyth County commissioners debate options after schools’ $5.03 million debt; private fundraising and partial forgiveness floated

Forsyth County commissioners discussed community‑led fundraising to retire roughly $5,026,337 that Winston‑Salem/Forsyth County Schools currently owe the county, and possible county responses if private donors raise funds.

The figure of $5,026,337 was provided by the county chief financial officer during the briefing; the CFO said about $4,740,707 of that balance related to school resource officers (SROs) funded by the county and about $300,000 related to school nurses. Commissioners said other smaller lease amounts had been paid.

Chairman Martin described a community initiative proposing to raise private dollars to retire a portion of the debt and asked whether the county would match private contributions by forgiving the equivalent dollar‑for‑dollar portion of the schools’ debt to the county. He said he personally could not commit the board but floated a sample approach — for example, if private donors raised $3.4 million, the county could forgive $3.4 million of the $5,026,337 school debt.

County Manager Shantel Robinson said the county needs every dollar it can get and cautioned that the missed repayments have already affected the county’s fiscal year 2025 audited results and fund balance; she said replacing funds now would help rebuild fund balance but would not retroactively undo last year’s impact. Robinson also said the county has adjusted operations for fiscal year 2026 so that certain county‑funded services (SROs and nurses) are paid directly by the county rather than routed through the school system.

Commissioners discussed timing constraints. County staff said interest on some outstanding obligations began accruing Oct. 1 and that the school system must submit a repayment plan to the state by Nov. 4 and begin some payments in January. A proposed community fundraising dinner was discussed for Oct. 22; commissioners indicated the board could consider a formal position at its next meeting if members wished to endorse a county response.

No final county decision was made at the Oct. 6 briefing. Staff said they would draft a resolution for the board to consider at its Oct. 9 meeting so the commission could set an official position for any public‑facing discussions or events prior to the board’s next meeting.