Public speakers decry Roanoke school funding cuts as council prepares FY27 budget

Dozens of residents told the Roanoke City Council on March 16 that proposed budget changes and a recent shift in the city's funding formula are jeopardizing core services for Roanoke City Public Schools and the students they serve.

Abby McDonald, a teacher in Roanoke City Public Schools, said proposed cuts would eliminate activity buses, reduce teacher positions and curtail specialty programs that help keep students engaged. "These cuts are not just numbers on a spreadsheet," McDonald said, adding that an audit had found the city "spent $5 million more than city council had authorized" in a prior year and that a schools rainy‑day fund had been moved into the city's savings account and sits unused while programs face cuts.

Multiple speakers, including Megan Mcnite, an adaptive special education teacher at Lucy Addison Middle School, warned the cuts would disproportionately harm students with disabilities and said smaller reductions accumulate into "death by a thousand cuts." Mcnite described a steep drop in field trips and paraprofessional support and urged council to use available resources to protect special education services.

Youth leaders and student representatives framed the problem as immediate and systemic. Christian Bernett, president of the Rono NAACP Youth Council, and Nazir Jackson, a student leader at William Fleman High School, said the school system faces a $16.5 million deficit after the city's funding share of tax revenue fell from 40% to 34%. "That may sound small, but the impact is not," Bernett said, warning that transportation, counselors and extracurricular programs are at risk for more than 13,000 students.

Speakers repeatedly tied school funding to broader city priorities: Chanel Henderson, a local nonprofit co‑director, described schools as community hubs that enable workforce participation and nonprofit programming; several parents said inadequate funding will deter families considering moving to the city.

Council members did not take public action on the budget item that night; Mayor Cobb announced the council will reconvene for a FY 2026–27 budget presentation on March 23 and hold additional community meetings April 9 and April 16, with budget adoption expected in mid‑May. Several speakers urged immediate restoration of school funding and clearer accounting of transfers between city and school funds.

Speakers urged transparency and accountability in budgeting decisions. "Why are our students the ones being asked to sacrifice?" Abby McDonald asked. Youth speakers provided the council with concrete figures and warned of the cascading effects of service reductions, from increased class sizes to fewer counselors and lost after‑school supports that many families rely on.

The meeting record shows repeated public appeals to prioritize children in the budget; council members directed staff to continue outreach and return budget materials at scheduled meetings.