Fulton County Schools CFO Marvin Doreef told the board the district faces rising costs and declining revenue, projecting fund-balance stress by the end of the decade and unveiling a GLIDE strategy aiming to generate $93–$95 million between FY2027–2030 to close projected gaps.
Superintendent staff reported a multi‑pronged 2025 summer program: 38 face‑to‑face sites, expanded Fulton Virtual Grama, a district credit‑recovery program with early completions, targeted supports for multilingual learners, and cost‑saving changes that reduced per‑student cost for one program.
The board approved a $2.5 million building consultant services pool (RFQ 40725), extended architectural services (RFP 410‑19), accepted 27 banking resolutions, awarded IFB 129‑24 for fire inspection and maintenance services, and confirmed executive‑session personnel actions; Miss Gregory recused from the RFQ vote.
The board unanimously approved the FY2026 budget package totaling $2.463 billion. Administrators cautioned that rising health‑insurance, TRS and special‑education costs, along with declining enrollment, will require multi‑year cost‑savings and revenue strategies.
After a four‑month pilot at Brookview and Heritage Elementary Schools that logged 716 rides and did not meet a 20% reduction goal, the Fulton County Board of Education voted unanimously to discontinue the attendance recovery bus pilot and asked staff to return with further options and analysis.
District officials proposed 2025–26 changes to the student code of conduct, including a K–8 restriction on personal devices during school hours, a new rule banning misuse of AI/false images and elevated tiers for distribution of tobacco/vape products; the board asked about implementation, training and communication plans.
District staff told the board the strategic plan's re-engagement with school governance councils and cross‑council workshops coincided with declines in referrals and suspensions, improved retention and rising net promoter scores; more disaggregated school-level data will be provided.
An evaluation highlighted strengths in teacher quality, parent engagement and student engagement in Fulton’s dual-language immersion programs but cited staffing and awareness problems; district staff recommended sunsetting DLI at Lake Forest and Mimosa for 2025–26 while maintaining ESOL services.
Staff recommended awarding Bowen & Watson a phase-1 site contract for the Camp Creek Middle School replacement and presented a contracting report including curriculum software renewals, nutrition contracts and program evaluation services; board members questioned price increases and ROI on some items.
CIO Joe Phillips told the board the IT division launched governance committees, an AI task force and security upgrades while refreshing thousands of devices and piloting new tools (Copilot chat, a chatbot and a Microsoft Fabric data lake) to speed reporting and protect student data.