The $17 million shortfall Charles County public school system is facing from the school board’s budget request remained on the minds of many during an April 24 Charles commissioners’ budget hearing.
Nearly all of the approximate 20 speakers spoke on education funding, including several Charles school board members.
Yonelle Moore Lee, the chairperson of the board of education, said, “Charles County Public Schools proudly educates more than 28,000 students daily across 38 schools.” She cited the growth of the county’s population, economy and wealth saying that while there’s overall more prosperity, children need additional resources to support their learning and achievement.
Poverty rates in the school system have increased from 33% in 2013 to 49% in this upcoming school year, Moore Lee said.
The need for staff that are equipped to teach English learners and children with special education needs has gone up significantly, she said.
“This budget is literally an investment in our future,” Moore Lee said. “And it is a reflection of our values as a county.”
Nicole Kreamer, the vice chairperson of the school board, said, “I urge the Charles County board of commissioners to fully fund our fiscal year 2025 budget request so that we can continue to support all students in Charles County.”
The school board had proposed a $523.4 million budget for next fiscal year, an increase more than $42 million over the current year.
The school system’s request for fiscal 2025 included $248.4 million from county government. The commissioners countered with funding $231.4 million.
The county proposed funding for the school system was still a $12.6 million increase from the current year’s county allotment.
Kreamer also mentioned the staggering poverty rate increase in the past decade, saying that students need proper resources.
School board member Dottery Butler-Washington said there was a need of funding for projects like the Waldorf Early Center, which would serve 155 additional 3- to 4-year-olds.
School board member Mike Lukas, who is running for reelection this year, said, “Some of the commissioners may remember when St. Charles High School opened 10 years ago, funding that was promised to the board of education never materialized and cuts to the budget were required.”
One of those cuts was activity buses for high school students participating in after-school extracurriculars, he said. He said those programs should not be a barrier, and that the fiscal year budget includes a $3 million request to help support after-school programs.
Superintendent Maria Navarro said, “I hope tonight you see the importance of my colleagues being here… We urge you to look at our request and look at the last 10 years worth of history in terms of funding so that you can see the progression of having less of a slice of the pie in public education.”
Four out of five of the commissioners were in attendance to listen to thoughts and concerns with county’s budget, with Commissioner Ralph E. Patterson II (D) absent.
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