SUMMERSVILLE, WV (LOOTPRESS) – On Monday, May 20, the Nicholas County Board of Education held a public hearing and subsequently approved a budget for the 2024-25 school year.
Despite facing financial challenges, the board outlined a budget totaling $52.4 million, an increase from last year’s $48.8 million.
The approved budget combines general current expenses and special revenue funds while accounting for necessary transfers.
However, the board highlighted several key challenges influencing this year’s financial planning.
One major issue is the absence of ESSER (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief) funds, which provided support during the COVID-19 pandemic.
With these funds exhausted, the board is tasked with finding ways to offset costs previously covered by ESSER money.
“We’re not going to have ESSER funds any longer, so we’re going to have to make some concessions,” Nicholas County Schools Treasurer Kristen Eakle explained.
This shift necessitates borrowing $3.6 million from the fund balance to meet budget requirements, an approach the board acknowledged is less than ideal but necessary under current circumstances.
Despite declining enrollment in Nicholas County, state aid to schools increased this year due to salary raises for teachers and service personnel built into the state aid formula.
Nicholas County property tax revenues showed only a marginal increase.
Eakle explained to the board that food costs have surged, resulting in the need to allocate additional funds to cover potential increases in food prices next year.
Another financial burden is the high cost of substitute teachers.
Eakle noted that state funding for substitutes falls short of actual expenditures, resulting in significant out-of-pocket costs for the county.
“We get a little bit of money from the state to cover sub costs but not nearly what we’re paying out,” Eakle stated.
Another issue Nicholas County Schools is facing is the financial impact of students transferring to charter schools and home schools.
Currently, over 100 Nicholas County students have moved to charter schools or home schools, resulting in a loss of approximately $214,000 in funding for the district.
That equals out to $8,100 per student annually.
The board highlighted that these trends are part of a broader statewide issue, with both charter school attendance and homeschooling becoming increasingly common across West Virginia.
During the personnel season, Nicholas County had 82 positions over the state formula, including positions temporarily covered by ESSER funds.
As those funds are no longer available, the board is making necessary adjustments.
“We’ve been over formula for a lot of years, and we’ve been able to maintain that, but we just have to be really careful about it,” Eakle explained.
Historically, the county has managed to support additional staff positions beyond state funding provisions, but the current financial climate requires a more stringent approach.
To address these issues, the board is focusing on natural attrition through retirements and resignations, evaluating each position to determine its importance.
The board hopes to use this method to avoid resorting to widespread layoffs.
The Nicholas County Board of Education adopted the 2024-25 budget on a unanimous vote.
It will now be sent to the state board for approval.
The full proposed FY2025 budget for Nicholas County Schools may be viewed here.
