Hillside Elementary School recently issued the following announcement.
The Fulton County School Board met on Thursday, March 17, for its regularly scheduled Board meeting at the South Learning Center. Following are highlights of some of the more highly discussed topics, with the full agenda available online. Other topics discussed or approved are available via BoardDocs. Summaries of Board actions can be found here and Board policy updates can be found here.
Superintendent’s Report
In his remarks, Superintendent Dr. Mike Looney told the Board that he had an opportunity to join a safety roundtable at the request of Governor Brian Kemp this past week, where he shared the district’s threat assessment protocol and discussed best practices in school safety. He then recognized Board Appreciation Week (March 14-20) by introducing a short video to say “thank you” to the Board, which highlighted the district’s gratitude for the work they do. Fulton County Schools is fortunate to have such a dedicated Board with decades of experience who have put forth solid policies and strong financial stewardship.
Budget Update
As Board members continue the formal process for reviewing budget data, Chief Financial Officer Marvin Dereef kicked off a series of presentations covering all funds except General Fund and Capital Programs, called Budget Markup #1. The Board heard from six presenters covering funding related to various programs including Title I, CARES Act, Title VI-B, pre-kindergarten, school nutrition, and retirement services/pension. In her summary of FY23 revenue sources, Executive Director of Budget and Grant Services Tracy Watson indicated that special revenue is forecasted to be $344.8 million, including a General Fund contribution of $152 million.
Presenters explained their proposed FY23 budgets and discussed highlights and challenges from this past year. Among other highlights, Executive Director Accounting & Retirement Services Suzanne Hatfield shared FCS is projected to have a fully funded pension fund on or before FY28. Additionally, Director of Federal Programs, Catherine Harper said the district onboarded two new schools to Title I (Global Impact Academy and Fulton Academy of Virtual Excellence) while Coordinator of Early Childhood Pam Weiser described how FCS provided more rising Kindergarten and rising Pre-K summer programs than offered in the past. In his presentation, Executive Director of Services for Exceptional Children Blake McGaha relayed among other highlights that the graduation rate for students with disabilities increased for the fourth year in row. School Nutrition Program Executive Director Alyssia Wright announced a new partnership with CTAE and the launch of the CMIT (Culinary Manager Intern) Apprenticeship program beginning next school year. The School Nutrition FY 23 budget does not include a student meal price increase; however, to comply with federal regulations for Adult Meal Pricing the Adult Meal Price will increase to $4 for lunch and $2 for breakfast.
Director of Federal Programs, CARES/ARP Montreal Bell provided an overview of the projected FY23 budget for ESSER funding for Fulton County Schools. Fulton County Schools has branded the support from this funding as the Bridge to Success plan. It details the district’s response to support areas with the greatest need and the academic and non-academic components that were impacted by COVID-19. Although all ESSER funds were not highlighted in the presentation, additional funds were received to support various CTAE Programs, Special Education, School Nursing, LEA Bonuses and Residential Treatment Centers in Fulton County.
The next budget presentation will be given on April 14, with public hearings held in May. The Board’s final budget adoption vote is scheduled for June. See the full presentation here.
FY2021 Financial Audit Results
Chief Financial Officer Marvin Dereef provided the results of the district’s FY 2021 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR), Employee Pension Trust Fund and Performance Audit on SPLOST. The ACFR and the pension fund both received clean opinions. He was also pleased to report the annual SPLOST Performance audit indicates the SPLOST program is operating in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations as well as the referendums approved by our citizens.
Original source can be found here.
Alerts Sign-up