BERLIN – Salary increases for teachers and funding for technology upgrades highlight the budget approved this week by the Worcester County Board of Education.
At the school board meeting Tuesday, held via conference call because of the snow covering area roads, the Board of Education voted unanimously to approve the $102 million budget for the coming fiscal year. Jerry Wilson, Worcester County’s superintendent of schools, stressed the significance of the task.
“It’s important to remember some of our key values,” Wilson said. “Students must have the tools to become college and career ready and we must support our employees.”
While Worcester County is tasked with funding more than three-quarters of the school system’s budget, Wilson pointed out that the money invested in it resulted in $211 million in economic activity, according to Salisbury University’s Business Economic and Community Outreach Network (BEACON).
“We know our school system is a powerful economic engine,” he said.
The budget for the FY 2016 includes $2.6 million to fund a STEP increase and a 2.5-percent Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for teachers.
Wilson said that as teacher salaries had hardly increased in recent years, it was becoming more difficult for Worcester County to attract top teachers.
“The reality is we’re struggling to keep up,” he said.
According to Vince Tolbert, the school system’s chief financial officer, the budget also includes $221,000 in funding for salary increases for bus contractors.
Other expenditure increases in the budget include an estimated $1.3 million jump in health insurance costs and $304,585 for the local share of teacher pensions. Tolbert said $200,000 was budgeted for non-recurring student technology expenses.
In all, Tolbert said county appropriations were expected to account for $82.7 million of the proposed budget — $4 million more than the county funded for the current fiscal year. State aid for FY 2016 is projected at $18.8 million, a $90,368 increase.
Tolbert said $400,000 in revenue was repurposed from the current fiscal year’s budget and would help fund salary increases and the digital conversion for local students.
Although the school board approved its budget this week, the Worcester County Commissioners will not adopt a budget until June. School system officials are expected to meet with county leaders March 24 for a budget review.