[MurrayMatters] FW: 2007-2008 Budget

Francesca Diggs fdiggs63 at msn.com
Tue Jan 30 11:52:22 EST 2007 

Murray Families this is an important presentation and will be very 
informative!  I hope you will plan to attend on February 5th @ Henley.


>From: Hashisaki <thashi at comcast.net>
>To: Francesca Diggs <fdiggs63 at msn.com>
>Subject: 2007-2008 Budget
>Date: Tue, 30 Jan 2007 11:22:33 -0500
>
>Below you will find some helpful and important information about the  
>Albemarle County Public School Superintendent's 2007-08 funding  request.  
>You can view the funding request and share your thoughts  about the 
>proposed budget by going to http://www.k12albemarle.org/.
>
>
>********
>
>Please Join Us For
>
>A Presentation on the
>
>2007-08 Albemarle County School Budget
>
>February 5, 2007
>
>At Henley Middle School
>
>At 7:00 P.M.
>
>
>Speaker:  Bruce Benson, Assistant Superintendent Albemarle County  Schools
>
>Who is Invited?  Parents and Guardians of Brownsville, Crozet,  
>Meriwether-Lewis and Murray Elementary Schools, Henley Middle School,  and 
>Western Albemarle High School
>
>********
>
>School Board to Hold Public Hearing on Proposed 2007-08 Funding Request
>
>(ALBEMARLE COUNTY, Virginia) – As part of its budget development  
>process, the Albemarle County School Board will hold a Public Hearing  on 
>Wednesday, January 31 at 6 p.m. in the Lane Auditorium, Albemarle  County 
>Office Building.
>
>Citizens wishing to speak to the Board may sign up beginning at 4:30  p.m. 
>in the Auditorium.  Speakers will have up to three minutes to  address the 
>Board.
>
>Citizens unable to attend the hearing who would like to submit a  written 
>statement to the Board may do so at any time through the  Clerk’s office 
>by fax at (434) 972-4055, by e-mail at  jjohnston at k12albemarle.org or by 
>the Division website at http:// www.k12albemarle.org/.
>
>********
>
>Superintendent Presents $149 million Funding Request for 2007‐08;
>Employee Compensation Ranks First in Spending Priorities
>
>(ALBEMARLE COUNTY, Virginia) – Investment in the people who work  inside 
>and in
>support of Albemarle County Public Schools classrooms ranks as the  highest 
>priority for
>spending in Superintendent Pamela R. Moran’s Funding Request for the  
>2007‐08 school year.
>Moran presented her $149 million budget proposal to the School Board  
>January 17, 2006
>during a special meeting. The Funding Request includes a 5.38 percent  
>overall increase in
>revenue over the current school year.
>
>Moran’s Funding Request includes a recommendation to dedicate the  vast 
>majority of
>available revenue to employee compensation and benefits. This  investment 
>in employee
>compensation and benefits is necessary for Albemarle County to  maintain 
>its position in the
>top quartile of its competitive market for teacher salaries. The  School 
>Division gave major pay
>increases during each of the past three years to enter its target  
>competitive market and must
>continue its investment to stay there, Moran said.
>
>“Our School Division made a major effort to enter the top quartile  of 
>its competitive market.
>That target for salaries in our market moves every year. Our  challenge now 
>is to maintain our
>market position and that requires a serious financial commitment,”  Moran 
>said.
>
>“We know the classroom teacher is the most important factor in  student 
>learning. We know
>there is a national shortage of highly qualified teachers. We have  
>evidence that our
>compensation package is giving us an edge in recruiting and retaining  the 
>most qualified
>teachers for our students,” she said.
>
>A “living wage” increase at an estimated cost of $707,685 also was  
>incorporated into the
>compensation category of the Funding Request based on the work of a  joint 
>subcommittee of
>the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors and School Board.  Establishing a 
>$9.75 per hour
>living wage will primarily affect classified support staff, such as  
>custodians and some teaching
>assistants. Moran said this change may help Albemarle County become a  more 
>affordable
>place for employees to both live and work.
>
>The Funding Request Moran presented to the School Board was balanced  to 
>projected
>revenues. It was shaped after four months of idea‐gathering and  
>discussion with the School
>Board, and employee and parent advisory groups. Careful analysis of  input 
>and the Division’s
>progress to date toward achieving Strategic Plan Goals also were  taken 
>into consideration as
>the Funding Request was finalized. The 2007‐08 Superintendent’s  
>Funding Request advances
>the School Division toward world class status through five key areas  of 
>focus:
>  Continued emphasis on employee market compensation, recruitment and  
>retention
>  Expanded and improved technology for student learning, information  
>management for
>teachers, and communication among employees and with student families
>  Improved staff development for teaching and support personnel to  support 
>strategic
>planning goals
>  Continued exploration of alternative scheduling and specialty  center 
>strategies
>  Enhanced career and workforce development strategies
>
>Required increases in growth and operations budgets triggered by  student 
>enrollment growth,
>building expansions, and natural price escalation are reflected in  the 
>Funding Request.
>Beyond the required increases and the portion of new revenue  earmarked for 
>employee
>compensation and benefits, approximately $1.2 million remains for  other 
>improvements.
>About $112,000 is proposed to support the Novice Teacher Network  Induction 
>Program which
>provides highly experienced teachers who provide direct support to  
>teachers new to the
>profession. The program has helped improve the Division’s retention  of 
>new teachers. It is an
>existing program previously funded through a University of Virginia  grant 
>set to expire soon.
>
>Major new initiatives proposed for funding include $500,000 for the  
>establishment of an
>information management system to give teachers real‐time access to  
>student data, assessment
>banks, and other instructional tools. Funds totaling $100,000 are  
>dedicated to the development
>of specialty center models including those focused on the Advancement  Via 
>Individual
>Determination (AVID) and International Baccalaureate (IB) programs.  
>Albemarle County
>plans to join other regional school divisions to support the new  Piedmont 
>Virginia Business‐
>Education Alliance. The Alliance was created to develop a  comprehensive, 
>regional approach
>to K‐12 education partnerships with businesses to support student  
>success. The School
>Division portion totals $84,604.
>
>“Our primary Strategic Plan Goal is to prepare students for success  in a 
>global economy. We
>need to model for our students in our daily actions the skills needed  for 
>success in the global
>community. The technology we use every day to meet student needs  plays a 
>big role in that as
>do the educational programs and access to real‐world work  experiences we 
>provide,” Moran
>said.
>

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