Residents and educators urge Carroll County to preserve $13 million support for public schools after AIB waiver

A string of parents, educators and school employees urged the Carroll County Board of County Commissioners to keep a preliminary $13,000,000 increase in the FY26 operating budget for Carroll County Public Schools (CCPS), saying the funds are necessary to avoid cuts and to use the recent Accountability and Implementation Board (AIB) waiver period to build a sustainable compliance plan.

"That additional funding, which is an increase of $13,000,000, allows the board of ed to avoid some difficult choices that were being considered," said Dr. Cindy McCabe, speaking at the public hearing. Dr. McCabe thanked commissioners for their prior support during the AIB waiver process and asked that the preliminary funding be maintained through adoption.

Speakers detailed what the $13 million would prevent and what gaps could remain even with the increase. Dr. McCabe and several parents said the additional funding could prevent measures such as closing the outdoor school program, eliminating devices for grades 3–5 and offsetting increased utilities. Multiple speakers including parents Lehman Tuttle and Lisa Masano pressed the commissioners to adopt the specific $13,000,000 increase proposed by commissioners cited during the hearings.

Education support professionals and union leaders described direct impacts on wages and staffing. "Three years ago we negotiated in good faith with the school system... the third year of that closed contract" would be threatened without the county increase, said Cindy Porter, president of the Carroll Association of School Employees, who identified herself as a special-education paraprofessional. Porter said many support staff earn less than $39,000 annually and that the county contribution is needed to honor the third year of the negotiated raises.

Speakers also described the broader consequences of cuts. Lisa Masano said that even with the $13 million included, the school system still expects to lay off three central-office clerical staff and cut $400,000 from instructional materials, a reduction she quantified as about $9,000 less for each of the county's 44 schools.

Supporters at the hearing described the AIB waiver as a temporary reprieve that imposes a responsibility to plan. "This waiver was not a free pass. It was a lifeline, a temporary extension of time and not an exemption from responsibility," said Amanda Dzaskowski, who identified herself as a parent and public-education advocate, referring to the AIB waiver on Blueprint fiscal compliance.

Speakers repeatedly urged the commissioners to adopt the preliminary funding and to plan for sustained investment going forward, arguing that investments in schools affect workforce retention, local property values and long-term community well-being.

Ending: Commissioners acknowledged the comments and reminded the public that they will hold budget work sessions and a scheduled adoption; the final decision on the FY26 budget remained pending at the end of the hearing.