Suffolk superintendent outlines $250 million proposal, asks city for $7 million to cover raises and inflation

Superintendent Dr. Gordon presented the School Division’s proposed operating budget and timeline, telling the School Board of the City of Suffolk the administration will ask the city for $7,000,000 as part of next year’s funding request.

The presentation focused on pay increases, inflation and program continuity. Dr. Gordon cited a 93.2% graduation rate and said Suffolk Public Schools has seen $32,300,000 in scholarships across the last four graduating classes, using those outcomes to justify continued and expanded investments in literacy, STEM and student supports. Wendy Forsman, the division’s chief financial officer, walked the board through the budget book structure and line items that together produce the division’s proposed totals.

Forsman said the division is "people heavy," with roughly 84.5% of operating spending on salaries and benefits and an operating-example figure of $225,600,000 in which $190,000,000 is for compensation and benefits. She presented a proposed total-budgets figure of about $250,000,000 and said the division will request $7,000,000 from the city, describing compensation increases of roughly $3,600,000 and operational increases near $2,400,000 that together explain the roughly $9,000,000 gap Forsman described.

Board members pressed for process and timing details: Dr. Gordon said the budget process began last fall, the public-comment opportunity will be at the next board meeting, the board is expected to consider approval at the board’s second March meeting, and the city must appropriate funds by May 15 under state law.

Forsman singled out a number of cost pressures the division has built into the proposed budget: an 11% pay scale increase for drivers (bringing starting pay to $21 an hour under the new scale), double‑digit health insurance increases, rising maintenance- and contract-service costs for aging facilities, equipment replacements (including bus cameras and stage lighting), and placeholder funds for Canvas should the state stop covering that learning-management system.

Dr. Gordon and Forsman also raised several programmatic priorities the proposed budget would support, including continued funding for division literacy coaches (previously partly paid by grant funds that expire on 06/30/2026), expansion of middle-school athletics, Saturday Academy and tutoring (previously grant-funded), and an expansion of the Watchdog Dads volunteer program.

The administration asked board members to review the budget books that were distributed at the meeting, submit written questions by March 6 at 5 p.m., and expect a public comment period and final board action in March. The division also noted it will provide follow-up materials and an FAQ on the website.

Why it matters: The request asks the city for $7 million more than current recurring support and attempts to preserve the pay increases staff would see after statewide mandates while absorbing rising fringe-benefit costs; the board’s decisions in March will shape school staffing, programs and facilities spending next year.