FY 2021 Adopted Budget

FY 2021 Adopted Budget at a Glance

FY 2021 School Board’s Adopted Budget
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The School Board’s FY 2021 Adopted Budget totals $670.3 million which is a 0.7 percent increase over the FY 2020 Adopted Budget.

Total Adopted Budget: $670.3 million
Projected Enrollment: 29,142
Cost per Pupil: $19,581
Revenue	Expenditures
County Transfer: 78.3%	Schools: 82.3%
State: 12.6%	Instructional Support: 3.8%
Federal: 2.4%	Facilities & Operations: 8.4%
Local: 3.7%	Management & Support Services: 4.9%
Other: 3.0%	Leadership: 0.6%

Enrollment Highlights

Enrollment is expected to increase 1,122 students from September 2019 to September 2020 for a total enrollment of 29,142.

Revenue Highlights

County revenue increases by $2.2 million in FY 2021. This results from the School’s share of increased local tax revenue.

Beginning balance, or carry-forward, remains at $3.5 million, the same amount as in the FY 2020 Adopted Budget.

Funding reserves increases $4.8 million due to the difference in the reserve funds included in the FY 2020 budget and the reserve funds included in the FY 2021 budget.

State revenue increases $2.8 million or 3.4%, primarily due to increased enrollment, sales tax, and additional funding in grants and restricted programs.

Federal revenue increases $0.4 million or 2.4%, due to an increase in IDEA and anticipated increases in funding for Food and Nutrition Services from the National School Lunch program.

Local revenue from fees, charges, and grants is expected to increase by $0.6 million or 2.5% for FY 2021 based on historical trends and increased revenue due to increased participation in the Food and Nutrition Services and Extended Day programs.

Expenditure Highlights

Funding has been provided for:

An additional 103.10 positions plus materials and supplies for enrollment growth
Four additional bus drivers, four bus attendants, two special education support vehicles and three new buses as a result of enrollment growth
Increased debt service based on the anticipated Fall 2020 bond sale

New investments address the School Board’s budget direction and include funding to support the growth of our school system. These new investments total $7.4 million and 75.20 positions, and include funding for:

The Department of Justice (DOJ) English Learners Settlement Agreement, which adds 24.20 teacher positions as well as providing incentives to special education teachers in self-contained settings to become dual endorsed in EL, such as reimbursement for fees and an additional step
Special education needs such as additional interpreters and one-to-one assistants
Transportation requirements including additional bus attendants, routing planners, a swing driver, and a dispatcher
Other investments for facilities maintenance and staff professional development
Contingency against further revenue loss due to the coronavirus pandemic

Funding has also been provided to continue several growth initiatives begun in prior years’ budgets, which total $1.6 million and 20.75 positions, and include:

Expanding Arlington Tech at the Career Center
Infrastructure and support needed in order to provide central support to students and staff including increasing the number of full-time bus drivers and bus attendants and additional technicians to meet SOQ requirements

In order to address the budget shortfall in FY 2021, reductions and changes in service delivery were made totaling $30.2 million and eliminating 124.85 positions. These include:

Offsetting the additional English Learner teachers by reducing the number of English Learner assistants by 24.50
Using current English Learner teachers for dually-identified students as instructors for half day to meet the DOJ requirements
Eliminating the FLES program but provide one to two flexible positions to meet planning needs
Reducing exemplary project staffing by half at non-Title I schools
Increasing class size by one at all grade levels
Delaying capital improvement projects including the Kenmore field conversion and the Education Center furniture and technology purchases
Suspending tuition reimbursement for one year
Reducing the Minor Construction/Major Maintenance budget by two-thirds for one year
Reducing debt service by delaying the bond sale to Fall 2020
Using Virginia Preschool Initiative (VPI) carryover funds to offset the cost of VPI teachers and assistants for one year
Reducing central office department budgets by $5.6 million which includes reducing necessary baseline increases for current services and additional reductions

FY 2021 Budget Development

FY 2021 School Board’s Adopted Budget

May 8, 2020

FY 2021 School Board’s Adopted Budget Presentation

FY 2021 School Board’s Proposed Budget

April 23, 2020

FY 2021 School Board’s Proposed Budget Presentation

FY 2021 Interim Superintendent’s Proposed Budget

FY 2021 School Board Budget Questions and Responses
(updated April 29, 2020)

April 16, 2020 – Revised Budget

February 27, 2020

Budget Work Sessions

Work sessions start at 7:00 p.m. and are held at the Syphax Education Center unless otherwise noted below. Work sessions are open to the public but no comments are accepted. Dates and times are subject to change.

FY 2021 Budget Work Sessions Schedule
Watch School Board Work Sessions live and view past work sessions.

February 27, 2020	Budget Work Session #1	Agenda Presentation
March 10, 2020, 5 p.m.	Budget Work Session #2	Presentation
March 17, 2020, 6:30 p.m.	Budget Work Session #3	Presentation
April 21, 2020, 5 p.m.	Budget Work Session #4	Presentation
May 5, 2020, 5 p.m.	Budget Work Session #5	Presentation

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