Dear community members,

Thank you to all who joined the WCUUSD School Board meeting and for the community's continued participation in this budgeting process.

Budget update: The leadership team presented the first draft of the FY25/26 School budget. Instead of starting with last year's budget and altering from there (as is traditionally done), the WCUUSD Leadership Team built the budget from the bottom up, focusing on the Board Parameters (below):
Remain under the per pupil spending threshold
Continue to offer and further develop the Multi-Layer System of Supports
Consider configuration changes that support our criteria
Frame budget decisions around meeting goals of the Strategic Plan and adhering to our Core Beliefs
Frame programmatic decisions around Education Quality Standards and Equitable Distribution of Resources.
Support accelerated growth for students from historically marginalized identities
Budget towards long term financial sustainability of our district

Given continued rising costs, the initial baseline estimated that Local Education Spending for FY 2025-26 would increase 12.48% to $38,446,499. The proposed budget presented represents a significantly lower 5.42% increase in Local Education Spending or $36,032,450. You can see the full budget presentation here: https://resources.finalsite.net/images/v1731960710/wcsu32org/j2dmqlyapqnquvflojws/FY26Budget[...]pdf).

Budget Next Steps - we want your input!:
Updates to the budget presentation will be made to respond to the board's and the public's questions from the Nov. 20 presentation.
Come to the Community Forum on December 4th at Berlin Elementary at 6:15PM for more meaningful dialogue about our schools and budget process. We hope to see you there in person or online via Zoom using this link (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84935949997?pwd=qLjf1jrrfhAuJPWhfvO0evL8A5Swmg.1).
Take the budget survey ( https://forms.gle/Nh8vJryExqJvYHVx7) to provide your feedback on the process and voice your priorities / concerns.
The next budget presentation on December 18, 2024 will provide tax estimates based on information from the AOE and the Tax Commissioner (as a reminder, Local Education Spending is just one part of the tax equation).

For more information….
A tab called "Budget Info" (https://www.wcuusd.org/budget-info) has been added at the top of the WCUUSD website. Everything related to the budget will now be kept here, bringing information together in one place.
A School Board calendar has been added to the calendars page with dates for all committee and board meetings.
We hope to see you all on December 4th at 6:15 at Berlin Elementary School!

As we embrace gratitude and time with our families this week, we encourage you to reflect on the people and experiences you are thankful for and to show your appreciation through your daily actions. We are deeply thankful for our staff and students, whose dedication and hard work inspire us every day. We also want to express our heartfelt gratitude to our communities for their ongoing support of public education.

With gratitude,

Your WCUUSD School Board

Event Info

Dec 6, 2024, 3 to 5 PM

Dec 6, 2024, 6 to 7 PM

Dec 8, 2024, 10 AM to 4 PM