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Floyd County schools approve amended budget, clarify SRO funding and prepare for new health‑mandated policies
Summary
Floyd County Public Schools approved an amended budget and outlined dozens of policy changes the district must adopt after the General Assembly passed new health and safety mandates; the superintendent clarified SRO funding had been preserved through a pass‑through arrangement.
Floyd County Public Schools officials briefed the Board of Supervisors on the division’s summer programs, revised budget and a slate of policy changes adopted to comply with this year’s state legislation.
Superintendent (Dr.) Crum told the board summer school began the week before and serves more than 100 students across grades K–11, and the division is piloting CTE‑style "Farm to Table" camps pairing culinary and agriculture students with younger learners. School staff described professional‑development plans, an August schedule for teacher return and open‑house plans for families.
Crum said the division approved an amended local budget that closed a roughly $327,000 gap by not filling a business‑teacher position and a payroll office position and by pausing some SRO funding. Later in the meeting the board chair and the superintendent clarified that funding for all five SRO officers had been preserved through a pass‑through arrangement, and the division reiterated it supports SROs in all five schools.
Crum also highlighted a major batch of policy revisions required by the most recent General Assembly session. Changes include mandatory cardiac emergency‑response plans and drills at every school, acquisition of bleeding‑control and opioid‑antagonist kits for all schools, expanded requirements to train staff (including athletic coaches) and a new six‑tiered heat‑safety protocol governing outdoor athletic practices and play. The division said it must also implement a policy on opioid‑antagonist availability and provide overdoses instruction to ninth graders.
Why this matters: The new policies are a direct result of state laws and represent new unfunded mandates the district must operationalize — including purchases (first‑aid and opioid kits), training, and required drills and documentation. The amended local budget uses personnel decisions to keep the budget balanced and, per the superintendent’s clarification, preserves SRO coverage for five schools via a pass‑through funding arrangement.
Who spoke: Dr. Crum, Floyd County Public Schools superintendent, presented the report and fielded questions from supervisors.
Details to watch: The board asked school staff to forward supporting cost data for the new state mandates to help shape any future county requests to state legislators. The school system said it will return to the board with specific cost estimates for mandated supplies and training.
Ending: Supervisors encouraged the school division to provide documented cost impacts to help the county advocate to state representatives for funding or relief on the new mandates.
