News: School Board Adopts $710.3 Million Budget; Sports Spared Deep Cuts

(Apr. 15, 2010 _ The Loudoun County School Board adopted a $710.3 million budget for Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 (governing the 2010-2011 school year) at its Tuesday, April 13th, meeting.

The board adopted its budget by an 8-1 vote with Dr. Joseph Guzman (Sugarland Run District) voting no.

The FY 2011 Adopted Budget is $22.3 million or 3% less than this year's adopted budget. The FY 2011 budget also contains $50.3 million less in local funding, a decrease of 10 percent.

The average cost per pupil under the newly adopted budget is estimated to be $10,826, down from $11,997 this year.

No Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) employee will receive a raise under the adopted budget.

In response to concerns from the public, the School Board restored the following items to the budget:

• Freshman Sports: The $307,000 cost of restoring this item will be offset by reduced summer painting at LCPS facilities.
• Assistant Athletic Directors at Tuscarora and Woodgrove High Schools and High School Deans: The $337,750 cost of these items was offset by a reduction to the SAT preparatory program.
• Middle School Summer School: The $205,000 cost of this program will be made up by yet-to-be-determined cuts in the LCPS Department of Instruction.

LCPS Superintendent Edgar B. Hatrick III restored the $132,000 necessary to fund the junior varsity lacrosse program as part of a budget reconciliation package he offered to the School Board on Monday. The reductions contained in this package served as the base motion for Tuesday's School Board deliberations.
Other items included in the adopted budget are:

• Central Office Reductions: $7.7 million including 35 central office positions were reduced.
• Two Furlough Days for All LCPS Staff: This will result in a savings of $4,458,000. The dates for the furlough days have not been set.
• Shared Principals for Aldie and Middleburg Elementary Schools and Hillsboro and Lincoln Elementary Schools: This will create a savings of $227,000. (The principals of Lincoln Elementary and Middleburg Elementary have retired.)

For a complete listing of all FY2011 budget reconciliation items, click here.