Anne Arundel County Public Schools issued the following announcement on June 20.
The Board of Education of Anne Arundel County today approved its final Fiscal Year 2019 operating and capital budgets, adopting plans that add 86 teachers who will be deployed to help address general enrollment growth and six more who will be utilized to address growth in special education programs, increase social and emotional supports for students, and launch sorely needed renovations at three elementary schools.
In approving both plans by 7-0 votes, the Board made no changes to either the operating or capital budget adopted by the County Council on June 14. In addition to the teachers to assist in addressing enrollment growth – Anne Arundel County Public Schools is expected to add approximately 1,700 students next year – the $1.2 billion operating budget provides funding for positions to open the much-anticipated Carrie Weedon Early Education Center in Galesville next fall and expand the highly successful Enhancing Educational Excellence (Triple E) initiative to the nine elementary schools in the Annapolis cluster.
“These are solid budgets that help to address some of the most significant needs in our school system,” Board President Julie Hummer said. “As Dr. Arlotto said after the County Council’s budget adoption last week, they show the value of continued discussion and collaboration on the part of our school system, our parents, and the County government. We will continue to work with all of those groups as we endlessly seek to enhance the quality of education we provide to the more than 82,000 students we educate every day.”
The operating budget represents a $27.9 million increase (2.6 percent) over the current fiscal year, and more than $15 million above the funding the county is required to provide to the school system. It also contains funding to add four school counselors, two school psychologists, and two social workers.
The budget includes funding sufficient for two step increases – one on July 1 and one at mid-year – for eligible employees, though the exact nature and timing of such increases will be determined through negotiations with employee bargaining units. It also includes a similar increase for non-represented employees.
The $190.3 million capital budget contains FY2019 funding to continue construction projects at Manor View ($3.8 million), High Point ($4.5 million), George Cromwell ($14.8 million), Jessup ($7.9 million), and Arnold ($6.7 million) elementary schools as well as Crofton Area High School ($47.4 million). Construction on the elementary schools will be complete in the 2019-2020 school year, and the high school will open in 2020-2021.
The capital budget also features the first phase of construction funding for revitalization projects at Edgewater ($16.7 million), Tyler Heights ($15.2 million), and Richard Henry Lee ($15.6 million) elementary schools. Construction on all three will begin this year.
Also included is $17.2 million for building systems renovations; $8.6 million for additions at Marley, Solley, and Glen Burnie Park elementary schools; $8.0 million for open space classroom enclosures at Chesapeake Bay Middle School; and $7.5 million for full-day kindergarten and prekindergarten additions at Maryland City and Riviera Beach elementary schools.
Original source can be found here.
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