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Superintendent presents FY 2027 recommended budget as enrollment projection and staffing needs shift
Summary
Administration presented the superintendent's recommended FY 2027 operating budget: an ADM adjustment, potential loss of SOQ-funded positions, pay-scale adjustments, and program additions including ESL staff, mental health positions, AP exam funding, and $200,000 for alternative program staffing.
Montgomery County School superintendent's recommended FY 2027 operating budget was presented to the board on Jan. 13 by Angie Bland, director of finance, and Trevor Bennett, assistant director. The presentation framed revenue by federal, state, county and local sources, and summarized key additions and pressures shaping the budget.
Staff flagged an updated state calculation: the Virginia Department of Education's tool reduced the district's average daily membership (ADM) estimate; the administration therefore used a working ADM of 9,005 in the recommended budget (the state calculation tool reduced ADM to 8,898.25). That shift reduces SOQ-funded positions (state-funded staffing) by roughly 23.5 positions in the VDOE calculation; staff presented a draft budget on an assumed ADM of 9,005 to manage the variance.
Key recommended budget items include pay-scale step adjustments and a 2% raise for staff on teacher pay scales, increases to substitute and paraprofessional daily rates, and a proposed minimum hourly rate raised from $16 to $17. The recommended budget also proposes adding several positions to meet state SOQ requirements and local needs: two ESL teachers, one library media specialist, a CTE marketing teacher, an additional school counselor, two behavioral specialists, two speech therapists, one interpreter, one bilingual liaison/family engagement coordinator, and an EMT teacher. The recommended budget includes $80,000 for an AP-exam subsidy program and $200,000 for staffing the alternative education program approved at the meeting.
Staff explained revenue drivers and a possible funding gap tied to long-term state funding differences identified by JLARC; they noted that per-pupil allocation remains approximately $9,400 per student under current assumptions. The recommended budget also anticipates a continuing need for local and state collaboration during the spring budget cycle and scheduled dates for board action: a continued board budget discussion on Jan. 20, approval of a proposed budget on Feb. 3 to forward to county administration, a presentation to the county board of supervisors on Feb. 23, and a joint meeting with the board of supervisors on March 16. A public hearing on the proposed budget was scheduled for May with final approval planned for May 19.
Board members asked for a more detailed line-item breakdown (staff counts and costs by category, bus/maintenance purchase details, nurse counts and allocation of mental-health resources). Finance staff said line-item detail is available and will be provided to the board to inform Jan. 20 discussions.
