Muscle Shoals City Schools presents proposed $44–48 million FY2026 budget at first public hearing

Sherry, a finance staff member for Muscle Shoals City Schools, presented the school system's proposed fiscal year 2026 budget at a public hearing, saying, “Tonight is the first budget hearing for the proposed budget for fiscal year 2026.” The proposal covers the period Oct. 1, 2025, through Sept. 30, 2026, and the board will hold a second required hearing on Sept. 11, 2025.

Sherry told the board that the system currently lists 337 full-time employees (338 budgeted), and cited a 20-day enrollment count used for state funding: the system was funded on 2,847 students while her informal count the prior Friday was 2,802 (the transcript notes 114 early-learning students are excluded from funding counts). She said 75% of certified staff hold a master's degree or higher and that certified staff average 15 years of teaching experience.

Sherry reported proposed revenue for fiscal 2026 at about $44,000,000 in one part of the presentation and later summarized total revenues projected at $45,000,000, with $8,600,000 in unreserved funds. She said roughly 53% of revenue is expected from state funds, 36% from local sources and 8% from federal sources; about 3% was labeled “other.” She described the state foundation program as the primary funding mechanism and explained that…