The Fairfax County Public Schools’ Budget Task Force should have final recommendations by Nov. 9 on how to close a potential $72 million shortfall for Fiscal Year 2017.

The task force has met seven times and was slated to deliver its final report to FCPS Superintendent Karen Garza on Oct. 15. The task force has requested additional time to prepare the report, which is now expected to be presented to the school board at its Nov 9 work session, a school spokesman said.

FCPS says it arrived at the latest budget gap figure (down from $100 million) by plugging in updated revenue and required expenditures and including a 3-percent transfer increase as included in the County’s budget guidance.

“The budget shortfall could fall above or below the estimate,” FCPS Department of Financial Services staff said at a board work session in late September.

“The shortfall contains uncertainty because there are costs and funding that are not determined until later in the budget process,” the Financial Services presentation said.

Garza has said a large portion of the school system’s rising costs are due to increases in compensation, rising health care costs and retirement fund contributions. The school system — now with 188,545 students — has a growing enrollment with an increased need for special services.

Garza will present her proposed budget in January. The final budget will be adopted by the school board in May — and it may contain changes such as increased class size, cutbacks in sports and activities and a reduction in staff positions, among others.

Meanwhile, FCPS Hunter Mill School Board member Pat Hynes, who also serves as the school board chair, is hosting the Hunter Mill  District Community Budget Meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 4, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Madison High School (in the Lecture Hall), 2500 James Madison Drive, Vienna.

Hynes will be joined by Budget Task Force member Sridhar Ganesan,who lives in Reston, and a representative from the Office of Financial Services. They will give a brief budget overview, demonstrate a budget proposal tool, and answer questions about the process and how community members can make their voices heard.

Meanwhile, here are some of questions submitted by county residents to the Budget Task Force and the answers from the FCPS Office of Budget Services:

Q: What number/percentage are ESOL students and receive free/reduced lunch?

A:  English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) eligible students (service levels 1-4) are projected to be 17.0 percent (31,989) of FCPS enrollment in FY 2016. Students eligible for free/reduced lunch are projected to be 28.2 percent (53,170) of FCPS enrollment. A student may be in both of these categories.

The FY 2016 Approved Budget includes an overall net increase of 2,631 students over FY 2015 actual enrollment. ESOL students are projected to increase by a total of 885.

Q: Does the health insurance increase reflect the portion that FCPS pays? Does it already reflect any increase in the employee?

A:  The health insurance increase in the FY 2017 preliminary forecast reflects the projected change in the employer cost for health expenditures from FY 2016 to FY 2017. A change to the health plan premium rate affects both FCPS and the employee. FCPS contributes 85 percent of the established medical plan premium for employees enrolled in individual plans, and 75 percent of the established premium for employees
enrolled in mini-family or family plans. Also, FCPS contributes 70 percent of the established dental plan premium for employees enrolled in a dental plan.

Q: When did compensation last increase and by how much? What is the trend?

A:  Employee salaries increased for FY 2016. All employees will receive a market scale adjustment of 0.62 percent and eligible employees will receive a step increase that averages 2.5 percent. Read More

Oak Hill consultant Mark Wilkinson is one of two candidates running for the Fairfax County Public Schools Hunter Mill school board seat. Reston Now is running Q-and-As with both candidates. Incumbent Pat Hynes’ responses were published earlier this week.

The two candidates will participate in a forum in Reston on Oct. 24. The election is Nov. 3.

Reston Now: Why do you want to serve on the school board?

MW: First and foremost, I’m a dad of a recent graduate of FCPS, and concerned, as all of us are, that our Fairfax County school system risks losing its status as a world-class system. And in my over 20 years residing in Fairfax County, I’ve seen some very disturbing trends in large class sizes, mismanagement of the FCPS budget, and a “we know best” attitude from the School Board.

My desire to serve on the FCPS School Board stems from my desire to give something back to the Fairfax County community, put our children first, and use my 35 years budget experience to turn around the FCPS budget. I want to re-establish the community’s trust in the School Board as advocates for our children.

RN: What makes you uniquely qualified to serve the school board?

MW: I’m not a politician, yet it doesn’t take a politician to see that this school board needs financial expertise and strong leadership to fix its $75-100M budget deficit. Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) is the 10th largest school system in the United States, and it requires strong leadership and people who know how to manage government programs, and who understand policy, budgets, strategy, and contracts. These are the key activities of a school board member.

I have 35 years as a public servant doing just that – managing budgets five times the size of FCPS’s budget, establishing policy, setting strategic direction that crossed multiple federal agencies. I will demand accountability and transparency, and ask the hard questions that are necessary to ensure that FCPS does not lose its status as a world-class school system.

RN: What are the three biggest concerns you have about FCPS?

MW: My plan is simple — reduce class size, fix the budget, increase teacher compensation, and close the achievement gap — which will improve the lives of ALL FCPS children. And as an independent and non-partisan advocate for our children, teachers, and the taxpayers of Fairfax County, I will do what is right for all children of Fairfax County — to improve their education, their quality of life, their future.

We need to improve student/teacher ratios because part of being responsive to the needs of children is a lower student-to-teacher ratio in overcrowded classrooms. The more interaction a teacher has with each student, the better the student will comprehend and retain what is taught. Unfortunately, over 50 percent of our Hunter Mill District elementary schools have had the largest class sizes in the county for the past several years.

The current FCPS School Board’s failure, to date, to remedy our children’s class size disparity — despite an overwhelming need to do so — is an issue I intend to address. Many current school board members distort the facts by talking about decreasing the classes across the entire FCPS when only 20 percent of the schools need reduction. Hunter Mill schools happen to be in that situation. Read More

Pat Hynes, first elected to the Fairfax County School Board in 2011, is running for re-election to the Hunter Mill seat on the board.

Reston Now sent questionnaires to Hynes and her opponent, Mark Wilkinson. Wilkinson’s has not yet been returned. The two candidates will participate in a forum in Reston on Oct. 24. The election is Nov. 3.

RN: Why do you want to serve on the school board?

PH: I am very grateful for the opportunity I’ve had to represent the Hunter Mill District on the school board for the past four years. My experience as the mother of two FCPS graduates, an FCPS teacher, a lawyer, and a community leader have served me well on the board and, I hope, have served the community well.

The current board has accomplished a good deal, including: later high school start times; full-day elementary Mondays; elementary class size caps; student-centered discipline reform; improvements in literacy and special education instruction; a comprehensive independent efficiency audit; and the hiring of the first-ever auditor general who reports directly to the school board.

Under this board’s direction, FCPS has taken a leadership role in the state and national conversation about better assessments, moving away from the high-stakes test score chase that has for too long dominated classroom instruction.

We have continuing challenges, however, including persistent achievement gaps, class sizes that are still too high in some schools, growing needs for space, and teacher pay that is not keeping pace in the region. Thanks to the efforts of the current board and Superintendent Karen Garza, I see progress on those and other challenges, and I hope the people of Hunter Mill will give me the opportunity to continue this important work.

RN:  What makes you uniquely qualified to serve the school board?

PH: As the only member of the current 12-member school board who has worked as a teacher in FCPS, I am uniquely suited to understand the interests of our employees. My colleagues on the board are very supportive of teachers, which I appreciate, but my time in the classroom gives me the experience to anticipate concerns and ask relevant questions. Having taught in both Vienna and Reston, I also have a network of local teachers and school-based administrators who know that I value their opinions and understand their needs.

Read More

March 1, 2016, is “Super Tuesday,” when Virginia and 12 other states will hold primaries or caucuses for the 2016 Presidential election.

The Fairfax County Board of Elections would like to get optimal turnout for the primary, so it has asked the Fairfax County Public Schools board if there can be a delayed start to the school day that day, FCPS said in a statement.

Based on the anticipated numbers of voters who are expected to participate in the presidential primary, and to avoid congestion at the schools during arrival times, the board says it is is considering the delayed opening.

The school calendar cannot change without a school board vote, so the school board will discuss and vote on it at its Oct. 22 business meeting. If the Board does vote for the delayed opening, it will reduce the number of built-in snow days from 13 to 12.7 for the 2015-16 school year.

In Fairfax County, 165 of the 196 schools and centers are used as polling places. FCPS policies and regulations require that parking spaces are to be reserved for voters.

Other states holding primaries on March 1 include Alabama, Alaska (GOP), Arkansas,
Colorado, Georgia, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee,
Texas, Vermont, Virginia.

South Lakes High School is among 11 Fairfax County High Schools that made gains in all three SAT areas this year.

FCPS released SAT results for the class of 2015 last week. South Lakes had average scores of 561 (reading), 565 (math) and 543 (writing). That is up from 550, 554 and 530 for the class of 2014.

Herndon High’s averages were 543 (reading), 553 (math) and 532 (writing). Those numbers were down in all three subject areas as the class of 2014 averages were 557 (R), 565 (M), and 542 (W).

Overall, students in the FCPS’ class of 2015 continued to post SAT scores above state and national averages, according to results released by the Virginia Department of Education.

FCPS scores are 41 points above the state’s average in Critical Reading, 58 points above the state’s average in Mathematics, and 47 points above the state’s average in Writing.

SAT results compiled by the College Board show that FCPS students posted average scores of 556 in Critical Reading, 571 in Mathematics, and 542 in Writing. That equals an overall composite score of 1669, up one point from last year’s overall composite score of 1668, FCPS said in a release.

National SAT averages are 492 (R), 503 (M) and 480 (W).

FCPS average scores increased 1 point in Mathematics and remained the same in Critical Reading and Writing when compared to 2014 results. See how the schools compare in this FCPS chart.

Among the other schools showing gains in all three areas: Annandale, Centreville, Chantilly, Edison, Fairfax, McLean, Stuart, West Springfield, and Woodson High Schools and Robinson Secondary School.

Of the 25 high schools in FCPS, 13 saw an increase in their Critical Reading average, 15 saw an increase in their Mathematics average, and 13 saw an increase in their Writing average over last year, FCPS says.

FCPS has broken down results in various categories. See more on the FCPS website.

The SAT test will undergo major changes in 2016, says The College Board. The test wil revert back from a total possible score of 2400 to a total of 1600. The format of some questions will change, and the essay portion, added in 2005, will become optional.

Fairfax County Public Schools has proposed a new addition for South Lakes High School that will add 40,000 square feet to the school, but the school is in danger of outgrowing the added space as soon as it is built.

The proposed addition will bring SLHS’ capacity to 2,500 students. That capacity appears to be needed though as current enrollment is 2,446 in a school designed for about 2,100 students.

The addition comes less than 10 years after SLHS underwent a major renovation that increased capacity by about 1,000 students.

After a sometimes-contentious redistricting process in 2006, the school, which then had about 1,400 students, soon after had more than 2,000 students. Temporary classrooms have been added to the property in the last several years to handle overcrowding as school population, reflecting an overall trend in FCPS, has continued to grow annually.

If the trend holds, SLHS may be close to 2,900 in the next several years, FCPS officials said in the most recent FCPS Capital Improvement Plan.

The South Lakes addition, which will be paid for from a 2013 school bond, is on the Fairfax County Planning Commission agenda for Oct. 15. Residents may speak at the public hearing portion of the meeting, which begins at 8:15 p.m.

Here is what is planned for SLHS, according to a county planning staff report:

A two-story, 40,000-square foot addition at the southwest corner of the building along South Lakes Drive.

The construction of the addition would expand the school to 373,750 square feet.

The addition will have classroom space to enhance the capacity of the existing school from 2,126 students to 2,500 students.

Also planned: 128 new parking spaces, which would be located along Seahawk Drive in the proximity of the school’s entrance and within the existing eastern and western parking lots, for a total of 758 parking spaces.

FCPS will provide additional stormwater management through the installation of open joint pavement blocks and five filterras (filter systems).

The staff report, which recommends approval of the plan, says “the proposed expansion has received prior approval by a public bond referendum, is included in the county’s currently adopted Capital Improvement Program, and does not significantly impact on the character of the existing facility and its compatibility with the surrounding” area.

The modular classrooms currently located on the future site of the addition will go away. But a series of other modular units, which house special education classroom, on the flagpole side of the school will remain.

Among the development conditions: FCPS will upgrade the existing sidewalks that are less than five feet wide along South Lakes Drive and Ridge Heights Road to five feet in width (or
provide ADA passing areas).

South Lakes may still install more modular classrooms on the property if needed to accommodate future enrollment.

Rendering courtesy of Fairfax County.