A high-quality education costs millions – $292.3 million, to be exact.
The Federal Way school board is expected to adopt its 2016-17 budget at its June 28 board meeting, and the total amount of it is set at that amount.
Despite $289.5 million in projected revenue – up $18 million from last year – a new English language arts curriculum, funds dedicated to equity, and investment in staff and faculty puts the school district in the red by about $3 million.
“This is an appropriate time to be looking at utilizing our savings account as we bridge forward – ignoring the levy cliff – as we bridge forward to a more positive Washington state K-12 funding environment,” said Assistant Superintendent Sally McLean at the June 14 board meeting.
Revenues
Although the district expects to see an uptick in enrollment by about 800 students, which will provide more state funds, the district “continues to rely on local levy to cover the current basic education cost.”
An estimated $2 million will come in for the 423 students expected in “basic education enrollment,” while around $4 million is expected for the increase of students in programs like Career and Technical, English Language Learners, Special Education, and other alternative learning programs.
“We’re seeing growth at the same time the Washington State Legislature is trying to reduce class sizes,” McLean said.
The school district was recently awarded $22.6 million to focus on shrinking kindergarten through third grade class sizes, but McLean said that grant, along with other revenue sources, is “prescribed money.”
The district will use $4.1 million of the $22.6 million funding source to reduce class sizes by hiring more classroom teachers and specialists, such as P.E. and music teachers.
McLean said the district will need to hire staff for 60 additional classes to satisfy the requirements of the grant.
“Most of the new revenue we’re getting is dedicated or prescribed revenue,” McLean said. “Spend it in the way it’s prescribed or you don’t receive that revenue.”
The state also provided $2.1 million for a 1.8 percent cost-of-living adjustment for faculty and staff, but that’s forced the district to pay the remaining $1.5 million. With the passing of the voter-approved local levy last year, however, the district can begin tapping into $4 million come February 2017.
“This is a lot of money, and we recognize and want to use that in all the very best ways as aligned with our strategic plan,” McLean said.
Expenditures
To bolster the new strategic plan put forth by the district, the 2016-17 budget allocates about $6 million in “strategic investment.”
Just over $5 million will fund a new kindergarten through eighth-grade English Language Arts curriculum.
“It has been very many years since we’ve had new curriculum for our students, and to be able to align that with the standards-based instruction that we’re doing is exciting,” McLean said.
An ongoing $2 million will go toward regularly updating the district’s curriculum in all subject areas as well.
The district will spend $600,000 on its Office of Equity, Engagement, Family and Student Success and invest $2 million in counselors, elementary school assistant principals, and restorative practices.
“We are missing some common practices across all of our schools,” McLean said. “One of those pieces we’ve been missing is having dedicated school counselors in each of our schools to help begin to address those social and emotional needs of all students.”
Approximately $1.5 million will go toward departmental alignment, support of the strategic plan, technology assessment support and the safety and security review the district recently completed.
“Again, as we talk about potentially adopting a budget that spends more money than we are anticipating in revenue,” McLean said, “we have to things to think about. No. 1 is [that] budgets are conservative and our actual expenditures typically will not – we won’t spend everything that we have budgeted. And the other thing to remember is that, again, as our overall K-12 funding landscape continues to improve because of McCleary and the courts’ decisions and the legislature’s work, it is appropriate for us to begin to start spending some of that fund balance to help support the needs of our students.”
A variety of independent consultants have evaluated the school buildings in the district and have deemed all roofing, boilers and athletic fields as areas of critical need. The budget proposes the district utilize short-term borrowing of up to $18.3 million over the next five years to begin to fix those “critical needs.”
Other funds
• The Associated Student Body Fund is earmarked for $3.48 million
• The Transportation Vehicle Fund has $1.05 million to replace eight school buses
• The Debt Service Fund balance will be $5.78 million
• The Capital Projects budget is $36.9 million – higher than normal due to the Federal Way High School rebuild
For more information about the Federal Way Public Schools budget, attend the public hearing at the next school board meeting at 6 p.m. on June 28 at City Hall (33325 8th Ave. S.).
