The Red Clay School District unamiously approved the final 2010 fiscal year budget of $160, 975, 359 million, an increase of $1.5 million or .9 percent compared to last year Wednesday, Dec. 16 meeting.
Chief Financial Officer Jill Floore said the spending will go up in the referendum initiatives, as the district is its second year of the referendum – the things that were promised in the referendum to have a certain amount of money spent on them.
Some of those initiatives are full day kindergarten salaries, high school clubs, middle school clubs and athletics and textbooks. The totaled budgeted amount for the referendum initiatives is $5,494,751.
Floore said enrollment is 15,674 a decrease of 36 students from last year, because of the number of growing charter schools.
“All the charter schools and magnet schools expanded,” Floore said. “Odyssey expanded.”
| Red Clay budget at a glance By the numbers FY 2010 $160, 975, 359 Total enrollment 15,674 Students lost to charters 1675 Students gained from choice 1014 Students lost to choice 262 |
Red Clay lost 1675 students to charter schools this year, an increased of 199 from last year. This year, the number of students lost to charters climbed back thanks in large part to Odyssey Charter that grew.
As for choice enrollment, Red Clay gained 1014 students through choice while losing 262 to other districts. They gained 82 students through choice from last year.
The 2009 fiscal year budget ended with a carryover $2.5 million, and the district anticipates that the figure for 2010 will be $13 million. Carryover is the money remaining from the previous fiscal year that covers payroll and other expenses during the summer and early fall before local taxes and state revenue pour in. Floore said Red Clay must have at least $7 million in carryover funds.
“We will absolutely make payroll next summer,” she said.
