Parents and students press Paulding board after FY‑27 preview as allotment cuts loom for Hiram High
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Summary
At its March 24 meeting the Paulding County Board of Education reviewed a preliminary FY‑27 budget showing revenue and expenditure changes and heard students and parents urge the board to reconsider proposed teacher allotment reductions at Hiram High School, saying the cuts would harm high‑need students and programs such as band.
The Paulding County Board of Education on March 24 received a first look at its preliminary FY‑27 budget and faced direct public pushback over proposed teacher allotment reductions at Hiram High School.
Superintendent Barnett asked finance staff to present preliminary general fund numbers. The presentation showed an overall revenue increase of $10,800,000 for FY‑27, driven chiefly by a projected $9,100,000 increase in the state equalization grant; local tax revenue was projected to rise $2,300,000 (the presenter attributed this mostly to a $900,000 increase in ad valorem collections and $800,000 for Tabith). At the same time, preliminary expenditures were expected to grow by $17,900,000, largely for salaries and benefits. The presenter said 89% of the district’s budget is allocated to salaries and benefits and highlighted an expected 2.7% increase in state health benefit rates that will raise costs for the district.
Why it matters: board members said the district faces a structural funding gap compared with some neighboring systems and that the combination of health benefit increases and lower per‑pupil revenue will complicate the coming budget decisions. The superintendent told the board district per‑pupil revenue is roughly $0.92 on the dollar compared with certain nearby systems, representing about a $40,000,000 difference the district must address.
Public speakers focused on the proposed allotment changes and their local consequences. Student speaker Janiyah Williams urged the board to preserve an assistant band director position, saying, “There will be an extreme negative impact to the band without mister Ritter being here.” Williams described student survey responses that credited the assistant director with improving instruction and student confidence in music programs.
Evelyn Coffey, a junior at Hiram High School, told the board the number of proposed allotment reductions for her school had increased from earlier drafts and that a loss of nine teachers could displace roughly 250 students. Coffey argued that last‑in, first‑out (LIFO) practices disproportionately harm students of color and low‑income students and that frequent teacher turnover undermines student relationships and academic opportunities.
Parent Brandy Coffey said Hiram High—she described it as the county’s most culturally diverse, high‑need school—relies on allotments to maintain smaller classes, extracurricular offerings and adult mentors. “Removing resources from high‑need populations gives feelings of low worth and unimportance,” she said, and urged the board to reconsider reductions with equity in mind.
Board response and next steps: the chair asked staff to provide more detailed information on Hiram High’s proposed allotments and the band program so the board can review the data before final budget decisions. The finance presenter emphasized that the figures were preliminary and that the district is awaiting final state QBE allotment calculations and the county digest.
What’s next: the board will continue budget work at upcoming public meetings, including a budget update May 5 and presentation of a tentative budget on May 19. The board did not adopt final allotments at the March 24 meeting.
Sources: preliminary budget presentation and public comments at the March 24 Paulding County Board of Education meeting; statements attributed to students and parents who spoke during the public participation period.
