Retention Bonus, Pay Hike In Fairfax County Schools Budget Proposal

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA — Staff recruitment and retention are a key part of the latest budget proposal for Fairfax County Public Schools, presented by Superintendent Michelle Reid to the School Board last week.

The $3.5 billion budget proposal reflects a $249.6 million (7.6 percent) increase over the current fiscal year 2023 budget. The superintendent is calling for $159.6 million of that proposed increase to come from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors budget.

"This is a budget that reflects our strong vision for student success for each and every student in FCPS," said Reid in a statement. "Students need to be active and healthy, both mentally and physically, to be able to learn at their best, and this budget reflects that approach. It also focuses on the very real need at hand, which is to continue to attract and retain the best teachers and staff, so that FCPS can maintain our strong academic reputation."

The budget addresses recruitment and retention to keep FCPS competitive for staff pay in the DC region. A 3 percent market scale pay adjustment is proposed for all employees with $80.9 million in funding, as well as a step increase for eligible employees with $58.2 million. A 1 percent bonus is also proposed for employees hired during fiscal year 2023 who remain employed with FCPS in fiscal year 2024 through $19.9 million in funding. A step extension for all pay scales is proposed with $4.3 million.

Other budget priorities include literacy initiatives, increasing access to PreK programming, supports for students with disabilities to improve classroom outcomes, and Advanced Academic Programs funding for students.

For literacy, Reid proposes $15 million for implementing the Equitable Access to Literacy Plan with language arts resources and $6 million to develop more strategies for closing the literacy achievement gap.

For special education, $2 million is proposed for the Special Education Compensatory Services Fund. The fund is related to a resolution agreement FCPS made with the federal government after a federal investigation found FCPS did not properly provide services to students with disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the agreement, FCPS must address the compensatory education of students with disabilities who didn't receive the required education.

For PreK programs, $2 million is proposed for 10 additional PreK classrooms.

For students in Advanced Academic Programs, $1.6 million is proposed for the final phase-in recommendations from an advanced academic external review.

The budget also accounts for the projected enrollment of 179,952 in fiscal year 2024. Enrollment had fallen from over 180,000 in 2020-2021 to over 178,000 in 2021-2022 but recovered to over 180,000 this school year. The budget proposal factors in a growing need for student services. Reid estimated 20 percent of students will need English for Speakers of Other Languages services, 15.7 percent will need special education services, and nearly 35 percent of students are estimated to be eligible for free or reduced price meals. The proposed budget has an additional $65.2 million and 679.2 positions to support the student needs.

For family supports, the budget would create a family liaison position at each of the 42 Title I schools at FCPS and a family engagement region representative in each of the five regions. For student supports, FCPS proposes extending high school counselors contracts and provide more funding for middle school spring and fall athletic activities.

On the environmental side, the budget will implement year two recommendations from the Joint Environmental Task Force to transition the FCPS bus fleet from diesel to electric by 2035 and support Safe Routes to School and Get2Green programs.

On the safety side, the budget calls for funding to support cybersecurity upgrades, background checks for employees, and additional security officers.

The School Board will hold a budget work session on Jan. 17 and public hearing on Jan. 23 (and Jan. 24 if needed). Another work session will be held Jan. 24 if a second public hearing day isn't needed. Budget adoption is expected on Feb. 23.

The county government's budget process accounts for a significant part of FCPS funding. County Executive Bryan Hill will present a budget proposal on Feb. 21. A School Board joint meeting with the Board of Supervisors will be held Feb. 28. The Board of Supervisors will advertise the maximum real estate tax rate being considered on March 7. Public hearings will be held April 11 to 13 followed by budget markup on May 2 and adoption on May 9.

After the county's budget adoption, the School Board will hold a public hearing on May 16, work session or another public hearing on May 18 and adoption on May 25. The budget takes effect for fiscal year 2024 on July 1, 2023.

Budget documents for the proposed fiscal year 2024 budget and more details are available online.