By Haley Thomas, contributor
The first draft of next year’s city school budget proposes a 5.58% increase, primarily to offset inflation, rising costs and expenses associated with opening Rocktown High School in fall 2024 — but also to add 40 new teaching and staff positions.
Superintendent Michael Richards proposed a 2025-26 budget of $125 million for Harrisonburg City Public Schools at Tuesday’s school board meeting — the first step before the school board submits its funding request to the city council later this spring.
Richards’ proposal seeks $50.2 million from the city, marking a 6.12% increase from the city’s 2024-25 contribution. He said state funding covers 56.5% of the district’s budget, with 3.1% coming from federal sources and the remaining 40.1% from city tax funds.
The district’s general operating budget will see only a “minimal increase,” Richards said, with spending focused on improved compensation and new positions to support student learning.
Richards’ proposed budget includes adding 40 full time positions, including 20 English-learner teachers, 10 special education staff and other essential roles yet to be determined at a total cost of $3.5 million in salaries and benefits.
The budget proposal also includes a 3% salary and wage increase for all staff members, amounting to an additional $2.8 million. But Richards noted that the state funds salary increases only for its defined standards of quality (SOQ) positions, which are the minimum number of positions that a school district must have based on student enrollment.
“Every school division has many, many more great teachers than the state defines as ‘high-quality,’” Richards said. “When [the state] gives you 3% for a teacher raise, they’re only giving you money for a portion of your staff … so we actually have to double the amount of money that comes from the state.”
To address ongoing staffing challenges, the proposal also allocates $200,000 for substitute pay increases.
“We are only as good as our teachers are, and we need to be very careful to make sure that we are bringing in the very best for our students,” Richards said. “And also, when our teachers are sick, when our teachers can’t come to work for some reason, we need substitutes, and we’ve had a real challenge with that.”
The General Assembly budget provides an additional $1.6 million beyond the governor’s proposal to support students with special needs, increasing available resources for HCPS. Staff feedback through the Staff Advisory Committee highlighted a critical need for more support in this area. The district will assign additional personnel to schools based on service needs and enrollment numbers.
Richards encouraged the public to email him or Daniel Kirwan, HCPS executive director of finance, with questions before the next work session on March 18 at Rocktown High School, where the board will also hold a public hearing.
Parents respond to redistricting
The school board is working on a plan to move nearly 80 students to different elementary schools to ease overcrowding in city schools.
Richards said he understands the challenges families face when moving schools, and that his own children attended three different schools as a result of redistricting.
“I know how hard it is to move. I know how hard it is on families,” Richards said. “But we are a growing school division. Waterman is overcrowded by 21%…and Bluestone is a beautiful school, a beautiful community, and it has room.”
Richards noted that Waterman’s staff has never requested student relocations despite the overcrowding.
“The number crunchers, including me, [asked for] that, because we see the numbers and we know that they struggle with it, even though they’ve never said anything about it,” Richards said. “That’s our staff, our staff just keep going, they keep serving students, they keep doing what they do. But we have to step in sometimes and say, ‘We need to help with this.’”
But during public comment, parents voiced concerns over the plan’s impact on their children.
Allison Garcia, the parent of a fourth-grader at Waterman Elementary, said she was “surprised” to receive a letter from HCPS notifying her that her child may need to switch schools. A major reason she purchased her home, she said, was its proximity to Waterman — just 0.8 miles away — while Bluestone is three miles from her residence.
“My son is part of the virtual kindergarteners and the COVID kindergarteners, and they are all pretty behind as a group,” Garcia said. I feel like the school board, you guys seem to take a long time on things … but this seems really fast to shift the kids. And in the current climate, it feels sort of like our rights are being stripped away.”
Tom Moran, a former K-12 educator and parent of a first grade Waterman student, raised concerns about the transition for students in the dual-language program.
“Just at [my daughter’s] bus stop, there are three dual [language] students,” Moran said. “Can Bluestone accommodate if all of a sudden, there are three to five students who need to move from Waterman’s dual program to Bluestone’s?”
Board Chair Emma Phillips encouraged families to reach out with concerns via email. Board member Kristen Loflin added that the response from the community has been overwhelmingly positive, given the sensitivity of the issue.
“This is the most pleasant feedback I think we’ve ever received,” Loflin said.
Phillips said she appreciates the way families have handled the situation, and that she doesn’t take it lightly.
“Redistricting is hard,” Phillips said. “There are big feelings associated with it, and I’m really impressed with folks’ ability to navigate that.”
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