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Knox County BOE reviews 2019 budget proposal

The Knox County Board of Education will look over the 2019 budget proposal this coming week.

The Knox County Board of Education will review the 2019 budget proposal on Monday, April 9 at 5 p.m., in a work session and on Wednesday, April 13 at 5 p.m., in its regular session.

Last week, Knox County Superintendent Bob Thomas wrote a letter to board members suggesting possible cuts to magnet school funding across the district. The funding could be cut by at least a million dollars.

Thomas said it's a recommendation, and it's not final.

"It's just simply that, a recommendation. There's not been discussion with the board at this point. So there could be discussions that come out of that meeting. There could be other ideas," Thomas told 10News last week.

The potential cuts would affect board member Gloria Deathridge's district, which includes Sarah Moore Greene and Green Magnet Academies. She said earlier this week that she hasn't had the chance to go over the details of Thomas' letter. She hopes the superintendent will reconsider the suggested funding cuts.

Thomas suggests allocating the almost $1 million in funding from magnet schools over to Project GRAD. This is a portion of the memorandum letter Thomas sent to the school board:

"The program evaluations conducted by our Research, Evaluation and Assessment (REA) Department have shown that some element of our magnet program and Project GRAD are not significantly impacting student achievement. Additionally, some magnet schools have seen limited parent demand.

Based on our program evaluations, I am recommending a reduction in funding for magnet schools as well as suspending magnet-related activities at Sarah Moore Greene and Green Magnet Academy, an additional $1 million reduction in expenditures will be realized. Although we are suspending magnet-related activities at two schools, the district will continue to honor all current magnet transfers and provide transportation for those students.

I am also recommending the district reallocate a portion of resources previously provided to Project GRAD. This adjustment will reduce expenditures by more than $1 million. The REA analysis of Project GRAD showed that attending a project GRAD school did not correlate with an increase in the school's graduations rate. Additionally, while participation in the Project GRAD Scholar Program showed some evidence that a higher rate of students attended college, it did not result in a higher completion rate. I am recommending that we add five certified positions to schools that are currently being served by Project GRAD to provide additional support to those schools. The focus of these positions will be reading and social-emotional support."

You can read the entire memorandum from the Knox County Schools superintendent here.

Jessica Holman, the principal at Green Magnet Academy, told 10News that the study done did show student achievement was down at Green Magnet, but says the school's transfer numbers are up. Holman also said to 10News that there is a growing waiting list for students enrolling in kindergarten and entering first grade.

During the Knox County BOE work session Monday, members will discuss the letter and budget proposal ahead of its regular session.

To see what is currently on the agenda for the BOE, you can click here.

According to the current budget proposal, Knox County Schools hopes to provide $483 million to the Knox County School system in 2019, according to its currently recommended budget. That's compared to $471 million for its 2018 adopted budget. The budget increase is partly because of its two new middle schools and additional staff needed for both schools, according to the budget proposal. The budget also suggests providing more benefits for school teachers as well.

To see all of what's on the current 2019 budget proposal for Knox County Schools, you can click here.

During the Knox County Schools work session on Monday, parents living in Deathridge's district will discuss other solutions on possible funding cuts for magnet schools with board members. Parents are also encouraging others to wear green to the work session, as well. Board members are expected to vote on the 2019 budget proposal on Wednesday, April 13.

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