Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) has about $6.1 million more than projected at the midpoint of fiscal year 2024, and will put about half of that toward next year’s budget and the rest toward security cameras, expedited background checks and other initiatives.
The School Board on Dec. 14 approved the spending adjustments proposed in the school system’s fiscal 2024 mid-year budget review.
County schools at mid-year had $4,972,234 more on hand, largely because of higher-than-expected sales-tax receipts. The school system also benefited from grant adjustments worth $1,137,280, bringing the total amount of extra funding to $6,109,514.
School officials will commit $3,106,217 toward the beginning balance of fiscal year 2025, the budget for which will be approved this coming spring. With those additional funds, that initial balance now will total $28,106,217.
The school system will dispose of the remaining $3,003,297 thusly:
• $1,137,280 will be put toward adjustments related to federal IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) grants. This budget line item is the only one necessitating a new position
• $847,000 will be spent on security cameras at Deer Park, Coates, Springfield Estates, Bull Run, Terra Centre, Greenbriar East, Freedom Hill, Bush Hill and Graham Road elementary schools.
“Our security grant was less than we expected,” said Superintendent Michelle Reid. “We’re still behind in our vestibule installations. We’re trying to provide security cameras out of one-time funds because we’re trying to make up for some of the gap in the grant money.”
School Board Chairman Elaine Tholen (Dranesville District) said a recent series of break-ins of staff vehicles shows exterior security cameras can be useful even in broad daylight.
• $400,000 will go toward helping the school system’s Department of Human Resources to complete screening of all current employees within nine months instead of 18. FCPS will conduct continuous background checks on employees after this initial phase and will continue to screen new employees during the hiring process.
• $300,000 will support replacement of FCPS’s Client Communications platform. This tool, available in multiple languages, provides an “all-in-one customer experience,” officials said.
• $100,000 will be used to support replacement equipment, uniforms and other items related to the recent renaming of W.T. Woodson High School as Carter G. Woodson High School.
• $100,000 will help meet growing demand for the school system’s “restorative justice” program, which is used to resolve conflicts or incidents. The funds will be used to provide training for training for school-based facilitators, project-based assessment and support, coaching, substitutes, training materials and supplies.
• $100,000 will support power-source upgrades for Advanced Placement digital testing at Chantilly, South County, West Potomac high schools and Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology.
School Board member Megan McLaughlin (Braddock District) said she had heard from numerous constituents that repairs and upgrades were needed at their schools. McLaughlin asked Reid whether some of the $3.1 million being put toward the next fiscal year’s budget could be used for those projects.
“We know that there’s a backlog in major maintenance and certainly that our [capital-improvement program] is not covering our facilities needs as well,” McLaughlin said.
FCPS officials are examining those possibilities, as well as creating a facility-renovations queue that is outside the one for standard remodeling, Reid said.
McLaughlin, who will step down from the School Board at the end of December, said she hoped Reid and the next board could put additional focus on facilities and maintenance backlogs.
The School Board approved the mid-year budget adjustments on a 10-0-2 vote, with members McLaughlin and Abrar Omeish (At-Large) abstaining.
