Teachers, parents and school staff urge commissioners to fully fund ABSS budget request

Dozens of parents, teachers and school employees urged the Alamance County Board of Commissioners on Monday to fully fund the Alamance Burlington School System (ABSS) budget request for 2025-26.

Speakers including Robert Alvis, president of the local Alamance Burlington Association of Educators, and several ABSS teachers and support staff said cuts to classified pay, counselors, nurses and other positions have left schools short-staffed and students without needed services.

"I come before you to ask to maintain to this, working relationship between the county and our local school system by fully funding this year's budget request from superintendent Fleming," Robert Alvis said. "One area I especially like to highlight in the budget is the proposed classified pay supplement."

School staff described long vacancies across special education and support positions. "There are 54 vacancies for special education teachers and instructional assistants, 17 vacancies for speech therapists, and 7 vacancies for school psychologists to evaluate students for EC services," occupational therapist Ruth Schaller said during public comment, citing current vacancy figures.

Several classroom teachers and school social workers described direct consequences: large class sizes, unpaid overtime, students missing instruction when substitutes are unavailable and time-consuming extra paperwork required for state testing. "We had a part time testing coordinator whose hours were already gone," one teacher said, describing scramble during state testing days.

Speakers asked the commissioners to prioritize pay supplements and certified staff funding for recruitment and retention. Sandra Cook, a parent, pointed to state data showing high teacher turnover in ABSS and backed what other speakers said about the proposed budget increase. "I argue that the proposed $5,720,000 increase in the ABSS budget over the current budget is justified because much of these funds are for increases in teaching supplements and employee benefits," she said.

School advocates also urged investment in student support services across the county — counselors, social workers, school nurses and graduation coaches — and warned that cuts to those roles are showing up as worse outcomes and greater workloads for remaining staff.

The commissioners' budget presentation later in the meeting proposed a manager-recommended package that would shift $10 million from current expense to school capital projects and move school resource officer funding to the sheriff's office; the recommendation also included a proposed 1.59¢ increase in the county property tax rate. Commissioners scheduled a public hearing on the budget for June 2 and follow-up work sessions in June.

The speakers asked the board to consider those requests ahead of the public hearing and to weigh the potential effect of budget choices on student services and staff retention.