Jamestown Schools Budget and Finance Director Brittnay Spry presents preliminary 2023-24 Budget to the Jamestown School Board (March 14, 2023)
The proposed $101 million Jamestown Public Schools budget for the 2023-24 school year includes no tax increase and the hiring of 18 new teachers.
District Director of Budget and Finance Brittnay Spry presented the budget to the board of education at a workshop Tuesday. Total projected revenues come in at $101,419,866. Spry said Foundation Aid increased by $9.5 million, for total state aid funding of $83,706,514.
Capital expenditures of $2 million are being proposed to continue HVAC work at Persell Middle School, replacing the scoreboard at Strider Field, reburbishing the tracks at Persell and Washington Middle Schools, and creating a new health center at Washington Middle School. Changes to remove the “Red Raiders” nickname from campuses is also included in capital expenditures.
Superintendent Dr. Kevin Whitaker said the budget is focused on helping students with English and Math skills with the creation of student support centers, “For example, at the middle schools and high school you would have two full time teachers, one ELA certified, one math certified, potentially special ed certified as well, with paraprofessionals. In a student support environment, students who are in need of AIS, which is Academic Intervention Services, can go and get that extra help needed in intervention in math and ELA and continue to catch up while they’re not missing any of their regular classes.”
Whitaker said at the elementary level, the focus will be on reading intervention with two full-time reading teachers being added to each elementary school.
If approved by the school board, voters also will vote on funding a new Capital Improvement Reserve Fund with up to $5 million. Whitaker said that fund is to help hedge against costs to taxpayers for future construction projects, “I do want to clarify, while the cap, the size of it may be $5 million, it doesn’t necessarily mean that $5 million goes into it right now. It just means we can only add a total of $5 million over the course of the next few years and then use it as it’s appropriate and needs to be taken out.”
The school board is expected to vote on budget resolutions at its March 28 meeting with the budget vote coming before the public on Tuesday, May 16, 2023.
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