Knoxville — The Knox County Schools system is a hungry beast, ready to consume a proposed $483 million budget for the 2018-2019 fiscal year (FY19). Superintendent Bob Thomas said due to a $2.5 million shortfall of revenues, his proposed budget for FY19 must cut money from some programs to pay for others.
The school board will vote on the budget Wednesday night. If it is adopted, the budget is still not a done deal. It will then go to Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett and requires approval from the county commission.
The proposed cuts to magnet programs and Project GRAD stirred plenty of controversy and criticism from the community during a long school board work-session Monday night.
While the proposed budget reduces or eliminates funding for some programs, others are set to receive a larger slice of the pie. Below is a breakdown of some of the major spending priorities for the coming school year.
SPENDING INCREASES
Teacher Salaries: The FY19 budget provides an additional $2.3 million for teacher salaries compared to the 2017-2018 school year.
Transportation: The bill for transportation in FY19 will cost Knox County Schools $1.3 more than the current school year. Around $1 million of the increase was built into the three-year contracts with vendors who provide school bus services. There is also a larger expense in 2018-2019 because buses will have to run more routes.
Two New Middle Schools: Knox County will open the new Gibbs Middle School and Hardin Valley Middle School next year. Staffing and running the schools adds $4.7 million to the county's tab compared to this year.
Charter School: Knox County Schools is obligated to increase spending at Emerald Academy charter school by $1 million to add two new grades to the school that opened in 2015.
Maintenance: Along with increased cost of caring for new schools, the old facilities and vehicles are always in need of upkeep and repairs. The FY19 budget proposal adds $900,000 to the budget for maintenance.
SPENDING CUTS
All the additional spending means other areas will get a smaller piece of the pie, or no piece at all.
Magnet Programs: The proposed budget reduces spending by $1 million to magnet programs at Sarah Moore Green and Green Magnet Academy.
Project GRAD: The budget eliminates funding to this program, saving the school system around $1 million.
Leadership Academy: The school system announced earlier this school year it would terminate the Leadership Academy program that partnered with the University of Tennessee to provide training to principals. The cut reduces expenditures by $680,000.
Public Affairs: These are the folks who work as community liaisons and provide information to the media. The proposed FY19 budget reduces spending in the Public Affairs department by $133,000 compared to the current school year. The budget indicates the number of supervisors/directors would be reduced from three to two. WBIR has been unable to reach Knox County Schools for an explanation of how staffing would change under the proposed FY19 budget.
With the proposed cuts, Knox County Schools would still spend more than $1 million on public affairs in the upcoming school year.