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Superintendent recommends FY27 budget with $2.92 million local ask; board schedules March 10 public hearing
Summary
Superintendent presented a FY27 recommended operating budget built on 4,454 students, outlined roughly $4.0 million in goal-based expenditures and a $2,922,661 local funding gap, and announced a March 10 board public hearing and April 1 submission deadline to the county.
Chair Parker opened the Gloucester County School Board meeting and the superintendent presented the recommended FY27 operating budget, noting the district's proposed budget is built on 4,454 students.
The superintendent told the board that declining enrollment and a higher local composite index mean a reduction in state and federal funding, estimating an enrollment-related shortfall of about $1.5 million and an LCI-related adjustment of roughly $350,000. "Our budget is built on 4,454 students," he said, adding that those enrollment shifts drive much of the funding challenge.
The recommended budget front-loads investments tied to the district's goals: instructional and academic supports (including a five-year Chromebook replacement cycle and additional staff development), student connectedness and athletics, safety upgrades, and mental-health supports. The superintendent proposed hiring a CTE coordinator, a teacher coach and a grant writer and recommended a 2% compensation increase (state-provided) plus a 10% across-the-board increase to supplemental stipends. He also described $3.3 million in efficiency/operations requests and a total expenditures package that included $653,784 for instruction-related initiatives.
Nut graf: The superintendent said the recommended operating budget still leaves a $2,922,661 gap that would require an increased local contribution from the Board of Supervisors. He outlined benchmarks for the budget schedule: another school board public hearing on March 10, an April 1 deadline to submit the school board's budget request to the county, and a planned budget adoption on May 12.
Public comment: during the open comment period, Julian raised concerns about a planned student walkout at Gloucester High School and urged the district to teach lawful civic engagement rather than tolerate off-campus demonstrations that he said could create safety risks. In response, Chair Parker read a draft board statement emphasizing that the district "respects students' rights to express their views" but that leaving class or campus without permission "creates risk and cannot be supported."
Board questions and discussion focused on staffing and attrition, including whether attrition-driven staffing adjustments would harm instructional delivery or special education services. The superintendent said staffing decisions would be data-driven and that the district was examining class balances, position conversions and county-funded community engagement roles to mitigate impacts. He clarified that some community engagement positions are funded by the county rather than the school operating budget and recommended coordinating with county officials on any expansion of those roles.
No formal vote on the operating budget occurred at the meeting. The superintendent noted grant funding estimates and a reserve fund balance that the district did not plan to spend down in the coming year. The board set a public hearing on the school board's recommended budget for March 10 at 6:00 p.m. at T.C. Walker Auditorium and listed the April 1 county submission deadline and May 12 adoption date as next steps.
Ending: The board moved on to routine business and calendared the March 10 budget public hearing; additional budget deliberations and a formal adoption will follow the advertised schedule.
