Rapp schools funding boost gains traction in state House, Senate

‘Direct message to Richmond about the struggles of Rappahannock County’

The Rappahannock County Board of Supervisors, as reported last month, joined with the Rappahannock School Board in adopting a resolution calling on Richmond to increase funding for the county’s public schools, which among other hurdles have seen enrollment decline due to a stagnant population.

Now, Rappahannock Schools Superintendent Dr. Shannon Grimsley has told the supervisors: “I am pleased to say that the joint resolution sent last month certainly has gotten traction and each of the requests have made it in both the [state] House and Senate finance committee amendments in some form.”

The resolution was approved during a joint FY21 school budget meeting as the public school system of 801 students devises its strategy for the next academic year and beyond.

“Our enrollment including our PreK is at 801, but we are estimating a loss in ADM [average daily membership] for next year and I am projecting the FY 21 budget on ADM 780,” Grimsley told this newspaper last month. “Our current year's budget was based on ADM 825.”

Five years ago, the county’s 2014-15 school year began with 982 students. Today there are 181 fewer students preK12th.

At Monday’s monthly meeting of the BOS, Grimsley said the adopted resolution sent “a direct message to Richmond about the struggles of Rappahannock County and other rural school districts in funding increased mandated regulations without necessary adjustments in current funding formula structures.”

Currently, she pointed out, the House budget is calling for a 4 percent increase for SOQ — Standards of Quality, encompassing the requirements that must be met by all Virginia public school divisions — positions over the biennium as compared to the governor’s 3 percent, whereas the Senate calls for the same 4 percent over the biennium in addition to a one-time 3 percent bonus effective FY 21.

“The Senate amendment also provides Rappahannock with direct aid for capital improvement projects,” Grimsley added. “Enrollment Loss did find its way into the House amendment, however at a far reduced calculation than the original formula.”

Grimsley knows her talking points when arguing for additional funding requests from the commonwealth, which finished last year with a budget surplus of $230 million.

She’s pointed out that despite significant improvement in Virginia’s economy, state per-pupil funding is down 8 percent from pre-Great Recession levels. And in Virginia’s rural localities like Rapphannock, which have since seen the least post-Recession growth, the numbers are worse. Rural localities have increased their share of education funding by 3.9 percentage points while the state has decreased its funding to rural schools by 4.4 percentage points, Grimsley noted.

Rural school divisions, at the same time, have seen a decline in K-12 enrollment of almost 24,000 students since 2009, which represents an 8 percent decline. In addition, Virginia’s 80 rural and/or small localities have the collective ability to raise only $19.9 million by increasing property taxes by one penny ($0.01/$100), compared with one single urban or large Virginia district raising more than $24 million.

Rappahannock County would only raise about $150,000 with a one penny property tax increase.

The superintendent also previously noted that the re-benchmarked Local Composite Index, or LCI, in Rappahannock County went from .76 to .79, which means more local responsibility and less state money for educational costs — perhaps between an $80 thousand and $100 thousand dollar impact.

Grimsley is now calling on the state to adopt a budget that, in part, funds direct aid to rural schools for construction/renovation capital improvement projects, reinstates Enrollment Loss funding, increases the At-Risk Add On funding stream, and fully funds mandated SOQ increases without burdening Rappahannock taxpayers.

She told the BOS this week: “I encourage anyone who wishes to continue the fight to send a letter to the current Senate and House conferees who will combine the amendments into a compromise budget to send the floor in the next couple weeks.”

Senate Budget Conferees, Grimsley said, are Democrats Janet D. Howell, Richard L. Saslaw, L. Louise Lucas, George L. Barker, Mamie E. Locke; and Republicans Thomas K. Norment and Emmett W. Hanger

House Budget Conferees include Democrats Luke E. Torian, Mark D. Sickles, Betsy B. Carr, David L. Bulova, Roslyn C. Tyler; and Republicans Kirkland Cox and Barry D. Knight.