By Gracie Hart Brooks
Editor
The Orange County School Board has approved an amended fiscal year 2026 budget, one that is millions less than the original.
On Monday morning, board members met in a special called meeting to approve an amended budget. Originally, the school board’s $93.2 million budget, of which $77.5 million is in the operating fund, requested $38.2 million in local funding, an increase of $11 million over the current year. However, the county included in its budget $24.7 million for the school’s operating fund, approximately $750,000 more than the current year, plus an additional $1.1 million for capital projects and $2.3 million for debt service. As a result, the board had to make some changes.
The budget originally approved by the school board included several new positions. Some of those remain in the amended version as superintendent Dr. Daniel Hornick said the school division could not do without them. A proposed first grade teacher at Locust Grove Primary School (LGPS) will be funded by moving a position from Orange Elementary School. A reading specialist at LGPS, a shared counselor between the primary and Locust Grove Elementary School, as well as a special education teacher and two special education instructional assistants at the latter will be funded. A new special education teacher and two special education instructional assistants are included for Unionville Elementary School with a new English Language Learner (ELL) teacher Orange County High School. The ELL teacher originally included at each of the middle schools is no longer included. A video/media broadcasting teacher and a criminal justice teacher to grow the career and technical education offerings in those areas and a reading specialist are also no longer included. A division-wide school psychologist is still included as hiring the position eliminates costs associated with contracting those services.
For security, school security officers at the high school and two middle schools remain in the budget with one of the middle school positions being funded via a grant. Security officers differ from School Resource Officers in that they are non-armed personnel not through the local sheriff’s office. Three bus drivers and a bus monitor are also included in the amended budget; the original budget called for four new bus drivers.
The amended budget includes coaching stipends to bring volleyball and boys and girls soccer to both middle schools.
Also included in the budget is the absorption of any health insurance increase for employees (estimated at 15%), as well as any dental insurance increase (estimated at 5%). The budget includes adjustments to the pay scales for custodian and head custodians (moving the starting salary to $15 per hour and giving an average 4% raise) and secretaries (moving the starting salary to $15.25 per hour and giving an average 3.87% raise) along with moving registrars to 12-month contracts ($235,000). A 3% raise is included for the vast majority of school employees. An originally proposed adjustment to the pay scales for instructional assistants ($560,000) has been removed and an enhancement to the teacher pay scale, totalling $3.7 million, has been adjusted.
Still, Hornick said adjustments to the teacher pay scale will bring the steps within $1,800 of the market median. The percentage of increase is lower in the earlier steps where the division is more competitive, and increases in the later steps where competitiveness is an issue, Hornick said.
“As we move forward, this is step one in continuing to close the gap on teacher pay,” he said. “I’m very proud we can bring forth these increases.”
Also included in the budget is $1.1 million in capital projects including a $350,000 annex walkway and cafeteria expansion at Gordon-Barbour Elementary School.
The $83 million budget, of which $72.2 million is in the operating fund, is factored using
4,814.95 students.
The board approved the budget 4-0. The District 4 seat remains vacant.
