Buncombe County Schools to roll out position‑allotment manual mid‑January, schedules two budget work sessions
Loading...
Summary
At a Nov. 18 special work session the Buncombe County Schools Board of Education asked staff to present a new position‑allotment manual in mid‑January and agreed to plan at least two budget work sessions — one on operational allotments and one on capital — with a third possible if state or federal funding changes.
The Buncombe County Schools Board of Education met in a special called work session on Nov. 18 to plan the district’s 2026 budget review schedule and to preview a new position‑allotment manual staff expects to release in mid‑January.
Board Chair opened the session and framed two priorities for the meeting: identifying topics the board wants staff to address in upcoming budget work sessions and following up on board development. The board agreed to plan at least two budget work sessions — one focused on operational allotments and school staffing and a second on capital needs — and to hold two‑by‑two meetings between staff and individual members for focused follow‑up.
Tina Thorpe, director of finance, told the board that staff have continued to refine a position‑allotment manual that will document definitions and an allotment model for more than 140 position groups. "Those should be available mid to late January," Thorpe said, and staff hope to use the material to inform hiring for the 2026‑27 cycle. Thorpe described the manual as a set of school‑ and department‑level sheets that will outline the positions and the formula inputs used to set allotments.
Superintendent Jackson and staff described the allotment model as data driven and built for transparency: it incorporates elements such as building square footage, activity levels, and disciplinary incidents for custodial and administrator allotments; it permits principals or department chairs to request additional allotment for unique, year‑specific needs; and a committee will review those requests before leadership brings recommendations to the board. "The model will help keep us equitable and meet needs through the lens of the allotment, plus listening and hearing and figuring out the uniqueness of a particular situation," a staff presenter said.
Board members pressed for clear ties between allotments and district goals. Mr. Cheatham requested that any budget education or work session explicitly connect proposals to the district strategic plan so the board can evaluate whether finance decisions support stated objectives such as Title I or mental health services. Other members asked staff to provide cost estimates when the board signals aspirational priorities — for example, adding a full‑time social worker in every school or adding assistant principals at elementary schools — so members can weigh tradeoffs.
On funding timelines, Thorpe said state budget action remained uncertain and federal allocations were still being clarified; local projections usually arrive in March. Given that uncertainty, the board agreed to plan the two work sessions in early February with the flexibility to add a third meeting if state or federal funding developments require it.
What’s next: staff will finalize the position‑allotment manual and present it to the board when available (target: mid to late January). The board intends to hold an operational work session in early February and a capital work session per the usual capital timeline; additional sessions will be added only as needed if funding assumptions change.
