Board Bulletin for 4/18/2025

 

The Fulton County Board of Education met on Thursday, April 17, 2025 for its regularly scheduled work session at the North Learning Center. The full agenda is available online via Simbli, a website replacing the district's former BoardDocs, which makes the School Board agenda and all supporting documents available online. Meetings are streamed live on the FCS homepage, with recordings available within 48 hours.

Superintendent’s Report

Dr. Looney began his report by recognizing that April 4-11 was National Assistant Principal Week before yielding the floor to Chief Financial Officer Marvin Dereef, who recognized the contributions of 19 students whose artwork was chosen for inclusion in the district’s 2026-27 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report and thanked them for allowing the district to display their talents.

Capital Budget Update

Mr. Dereef, along with Chief Operations Officer Noel Maloof and Chief Information Officer Dr. Joe Phillips, provided an update on the district’s strategic direction, financial planning, and adjustments for the Capital Plan 2027. This presentation is part of the annual budget review and covers capital expenditures, which are funded through the 1-penny sales tax, called a SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax).

Revenue from the SPLOST is projected to bring in $1.2 billion over the next five years accompanied by some additional contributions from federal and local sources. The total planned spending for construction, non-construction projects, technologies and reserves equals the projected revenue totals. Due to strong financial stewardship by the Board of Education, the district continues to fund all capital needs without incurring debt.

Dr. Phillips presented the district’s five-year vision for informational technology which aims to transform learning experiences by enhancing access to devices, collaborative platforms, and high-quality content for students, teachers, and staff. Planned investments include distributing new hardware, upgrading networks, boosting cybersecurity, and improving data systems. The district is requesting $306.8 million for planned strategic investments that include expanding technology support, strengthening cybersecurity, upgrading infrastructure, and enhancing data integration to better serve our community.

Mr. Maloof presented the district’s five-year vision for Operations. While expected revenues from SPLOST VI have stayed on track, costs in the construction market have skyrocketed since the inception of the current Capital Plan 2027. The Operations Division has built this into estimates for budgeting purposes and is tracking all projects.

Mr. Maloof said the reserves for both SPLOST V and SPLOST VI sit at a combined total of $329 million. This amount will be used to cover cost escalation along with any funding that needs to be allocated to bring projects in line with current project values. In addition, the team has worked to revise the expected expenses for projects to reflect a major decrease in the difference between what we expect our projects to cost and what we expect to receive in revenue. As we move forward, Mr. Maloof projects that this number will continue to decrease and expects to see a continuation of competitive pricing reflected in the bids the district is receiving from trade partners. To see the full presentation, click here.

FY 2026 Special Revenue Funds

Executive Director of Budget Services, Tracy Watson, introduced a comprehensive presentation on the 2026 Special Revenue Funds, which include all funds except the General Fund and Capital Programs. Six presenters discussed funding related to their respective programs, including the pension plan, the School Nutrition Program, Title I, Title II-A, pre-K, and Title VI-B. Ms. Watson noted that overall, Special Revenue is forecasted to be around $327.4 million, including a General Fund contribution of $220.7 million. Most of the General Fund contribution is due to the Maintenance of Effort (MOE) requirement for Special Education.

The first of the six presentations came from the Executive Director of Professional Learning and Leadership Development (PLLD), Dr. Brian Keefer, who provided an update on the district’s Title IIA budget. These funds support professional development, teacher and principal training, recruitment and retention initiatives, and the staff needed to carry out this work. According to Dr. Keefer, Title IIA funding has steadily declined. Despite these challenges, the FY26 budget maintains support for all programs and interdepartmental requests from the Academics Division at levels consistent with FY25, with only minor adjustments.

Retirement Services Director, Charles Robinson, provided an update on the FCS Employees’ Pension Fund budget, noting that contributions from the FCS General Fun will decrease significantly in FY26, reducing the burden on the district. However, the exact contribution level may change based on market conditions.  Adjustments are expected with a slight increase in employee contributions, an expenditure increase of nearly $1 million, mainly due to a 3% Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for employees, and slight increases in investment expenses and salary and benefits.

School Nutrition Program Executive Director Alyssia Wright then presented information about meal pricing for the 2025-26 school year, proposing a student meal increase of $0.25 for lunch and $0.25 for breakfast. If approved, meal prices for elementary students will be $1.45 for breakfast and $2.85 for lunch, and $1.60 for breakfast and $3.10 for lunch for middle and high schoolers. Even with this increase, Fulton County’s meal prices will remain lower than most other metro districts. School Nutrition remains committed to providing high-quality meals and introducing new menu items to align with current trends.

Director of Federal Programs Catherine Harper stated that the estimated Title I, Part A budget is $23.2 million, which is 95% of the district's original FY25 budget. Of that, $16.5 million is designated for schools, representing 71% of the total budget, consistent with past years. Despite constraints, the FY26 budget maintains support for all Title I programs at levels consistent with FY25, with only minor adjustments.

Coordinator of the Early Childhood Department Pam Weiser shared that Fulton’s pre-kindergarten program provides children who are four years old on September 1 of the enrollment year with the learning experiences they need to prepare for kindergarten. The proposed Pre-K budget for FY26 is $15 million, based on anticipated salaries and benefit costs for FY26 for all 94 classrooms.

Finally, Executive Director of Exceptional Children, (SEC) Tris Gilland, said the department is projecting a Title VI-B expenditure of over $18 million, representing approximately 67% of the overall SEC budget. With 97% of federal funds directly funding personnel salary and benefits for 107 school-based and itinerant positions, the remainder funds non-personnel costs.

In the coming weeks, the budget process will follow the timeline of scheduled activities as outlined in the FY26 budget calendar. In addition to the presentation of Budget Markup #2 (General Fund), the district will hold public budget hearings, salary and millage rate hearings (if necessary). After these steps, the district will adopt the FY26 tentative and final budgets and millage rates. Click here to see the full presentation.

Educational Specifications Update

The Board received a proposed update to the district’s Educational Specifications (“ed specs”), which are reviewed every five years per FCBOE policy. These guidelines are used by districts, architects and engineers to align school design with academic programming. The last full update was in 2020, with amendments adopted in 2023 and 2024.

The current proposal includes minor but meaningful revisions to reflect improvements in facilities and evolving academic and extracurricular programs. Highlights include repurposing one of the media centers’ collaborative spaces into a multipurpose space to better accommodate student activity needs. Also, ed specs were established for the K-5 L.E.A.P. program, School-Based Health Centers, and S.A.F.E. Centers to ensure future programs are aligned with those already in place. The Optional Programs section in the document’s appendices was updated to expand middle school performing arts spaces. The work session presentation and proposed update can be found here.

To develop the update, district staff reviewed the number of rooms and square footage of every FCS-owned school and worked with Collins Cooper Carusi Architects to involve school/district leaders in assessing the strengths and weaknesses of various program spaces. Feedback also is being sought from parents, teachers and community leaders through the Superintendent’s Advisory Councils as well as engagement with the broader school community through an informational website, www.fultonschools.org/edspecs. The site hosts background information, a video presentation explaining the proposed updates, and a link to a ThoughtExchange survey for collecting comments. Final approval is expected at the Board’s May 13 meeting. Click here to see the full presentation.

New Hires & Promotions

The following individuals were approved for a new position at the Board meeting:

• Julie Baldwin | Executive Director of Superintendent’s Office and Board Services
• Montreal Bell | Executive Director of Board Services
• Kimberly Cerasoli | Principal, Wilson Creek Elementary School
• Aja Wilkins | Principal, Wolf Creek Elementary School

Pre-Work Session

Fulton County Schools’ pre-work session is a public meeting that takes place before each monthly work session. It is an opportunity for the Board to receive policy drafts, provide feedback, give presentations, or focus on topics of interest. Audio recordings of the pre-work session are available within 48 hours. Topics discussed at this week’s session include:

• Program Evaluation Update: Leadership Development Portfolio
• Board Policy IFBGA Electronic Communications
• Board Policy IDD Special Programs: Schools Without Attendance Boundaries

Board Recognitions

Each month, the Board recognizes outstanding students, staff, and schools honored at the state, national, or international level. Honorees must have placed first at the regional or state level or be among the top finishers at the national or international level. The following teams and individuals were honored at the meeting: 

• Students from Multiple Schools Win First Place at the 2025 Georgia Student Technology Competition (GaSTC)
• Chattahoochee High School Wins First Place at the Georgia Senior Beta Club Convention
• Creekside High School Girls Varsity Basketball Team Crowned 4A State Champions
• Creekside High School’s AVID Program Recognized as a National Demonstration School

2025-26 Community Meetings with Board Members

Each member of the Fulton County Board of Education sponsors a monthly meeting open to all community members. The sessions provide an opportunity for direct contact with community members and give Board members a chance to listen to local issues and concerns. Click here to see the meeting schedules of all Board members.