THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, June 9, 1995 TAG: 9506080161
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 04 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ELIZABETH THIEL, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 45 lines
The School Board approved the final version of its 1995-96 budget Tuesday night, to accommodate $3.8 million in cuts made by City Council.
The school system's budget for next year will be $358.4 million. The School Board had requested $362.2 million.
The biggest chunk, about $3 million, will come from the budgets of Superintendent Sidney L. Faucette's five top administrators - Deputy Superintendent James L. Pughsley, assistant superintendents K. Edwin Brown and Anne Meek, Chief Operations Officer John S. Kalocay and Chief Financial Officer Mordecai L. Smith.
``These reductions have been endorsed by each member of the leadership team,'' Smith said.
Smith said the cuts would not affect present instructional programs in schools.
But the reductions include $284,723 less for library materials and supplies and $100,000 less for developing a series of systemwide tests.
The budget for implementing an accelerated program at six city elementary schools, where the entire staff is given intense training to help low-achieving students, also will be cut. Brown said that will mean the school system no longer will be able to afford to hire California consultants to help those schools with the accelerated program.
But principals did not think the consultants were much help anyway, Brown said, because they only visited a few times a year. Brown said the school system's instructional experts provided better assistance, because they were more available.
``They (principals) are comfortable with this position, so long as from my department, we continue to offer them support,'' Brown said.
Board member Robert W. Hall, the lone dissenter in the approval of the revised budget, said he was concerned about reducing money for library materials.
``I just think it's not a particularly wise proposal,'' he said.
KEYWORDS: VIRGINIA BEACH SCHOOL BOARD BUDGET by CNB