Angelica Ramos
Contributing Writer
MONTGOMERY COUNTY- The Montgomery County School Board met on May 21, 2024 to celebrate student success and approve the operating budget for FY 2024-2025.
At the top of the meeting, the school board opened up the meeting to personnel and teachers to highlight students’ success in CTE. Four young ladies from Auburn High School made history by winning two state championships. Until these four ladies, no one had previously won both competitions in the same year with the same students. Those wins were in Horse Judging and Hippology. These history-making young ladies then went on to nationals where they earned a silver rating. Blacksburg High School teacher, Jay Mathis, acknowledged his two students who won their first state championship for Skills USA in Cybersecurity. This competition was 72 hours long and students Tyler Racek and Gabriel Mendoza, brought Blacksburg High School their first win in this competition. Blacksburg High School students also won state championships in Prepared Speech, won by Maisha Hudait, and Advertising and Design, won by Kallan Malabad. The BHS Drone team placed first in state as well. Ten teams brought success back home to Montgomery County from FBLA.
“Thank you,” Mark Husband, Director of CTE and Virtual Learning, said to the board, “for providing us another opportunity to recognize outstanding MCPS students.”
The $146,610,639 operating budget the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors approved for Montgomery County Public Schools reduced the original proposed budget by roughly $900,000, so the school board had to find ways to reduce the budget. The school board did not cut anyone’s salaries or cut funding that was already planned for, they simply reallocated where funds were being placed. Board members said they did not want to adjust or hit any personnel issues such as staff pay and health insurance, but did review and revise the funds of the budget that were going towards items like school buses. Currently MCPS has four electric buses that are being replaced by diesel buses as the electric buses could not hold long enough charges and were struggling on certain bus routes. MCPS will be receiving four new buses additional to the four being replaced. During budget discussion, board members were concerned that funds were going toward positions they felt to be unnecessary and that they needed an updated version of the budget that better displays relocations and revisions to the budget due to the funds approved by the Board of Supervisors. The school board voted to approve the budget with an addendum that asks for an updated version that shows said revisions.
“I’m just really pleased that we’re moving toward better equity,” Board Member Laura Purcell said, “for all of our positions and I really appreciate the ongoing advocacy of the veteran sitting board.”
Board Chair Linwood Hudson agreed with Purcell, saying he believes the board is taking positive steps in the right direction with their votes and that the board will continue to make improvements for the future of Montgomery County Public Schools.
