Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) Superintendent Dr. Thomas Taylor on Wednesday recommended a $3.61 billion operating budget for the next school year, which is an 8.97% increase over the current budget.
Taylor acknowledged several times that his request was “a big ask,” but he explained, “This budget is not innovative. This is a broccoli budget. This is a budget that fills holes. This is a budget that solves problems.”
His reference to his least favorite vegetable of broccoli was Taylor’s way of describing a bare bones salad with no dressing, just some broccoli. He likened that dry salad to the budget that now must be gone through first by Board of Education members and then county council members.
During the process, public hearings are scheduled on Jan. 16 and Jan. 27.
The proposed budget cuts $7 million thanks to a central office reorganization that includes cutting 81 positions, including temporary placements and office budgets.
The budget includes 688 additional positions in special education, for $46.7 million, and 47 new positions for emergent multilingual learners, for $4 million.
Staff will receive an increase of about 3.2%.
MCPS Superintendent Taylor presented his FY 26 budget of $3.61 billion Wednesday night. That is a 8.97% increase over the current budget.@mymcmedia @mcps pic.twitter.com/Ao913w08G3
— suzanne pollak (@SuzannePollak) December 19, 2024
The proposed budget calls for a new way of divvying up funds to schools. Schools with the most multilingual students and ones with the most students receiving Free and Reduced Meals will be allocated the most money.
Listening to the presentation were three councilmembers, President Kate Smith, Vice President Will Jawando and Kristen Mink as well as County Executive Marc Elrich.
Last year’s MCPS budget, which was adopted prior to Taylor’s hiring, also included an increase and resulted in harsh words from council concerning a lack of transparency.
After hearing the presentation, Stewart said that while she needed time to go over it slowly, she was happy with Taylor’s explanations and graphs and promises to include every line item on the MCPS website.
The budget includes $40 million “to begin addressing” the underfunding of the district’s self-insured employee benefits plan and $10.9 million to keep MCPS compliant with the state’s Blueprint for Education.
It also adds 52 positions to address school safety, at a cost of $3.2 million.
“We get to take these wonderful kids that we have been entrusted with, and we get to transform them,” Taylor said. “We unleash the potential of young people. We inspire young people to be great adults.”
The district includes 211 schools and 160,000 students. While enrollment has remained relatively flat, the number of students needing special help due to a disability, poverty or not English speaking when they enter the classroom has grown considerably, Taylor said.
The percent of students receiving free and reduced meals grew by 15% since 2021.
A few people stood outside the Board of Education building during the meeting and urged MCPS to reinstate its virtual academy.
Even though enrollment decreased by about 2% since 2019, the number of employees in the central office rose 24% during that same time, Taylor noted.
“We’ve dug ourselves into quite a bit of a hole,” both financially and academically, he said, adding that his proposed budget “is very focused on filling holes.”
The average teacher salary here is $87,600, with first year teachers averaging $62,550. Bus drivers make $37,000.
70% of the workforce lives in Montgomery County, where living expenses are high, Taylor said. He noted that beginning teachers qualify for housing assistance.
Because MCPS expects reduced federal funds and either flat or reduced funds from the state, he is requesting that Montgomery County increase its contributions. Currently, the council handles 64% of the budget, and Taylor is asking that jump to about 67%.
Speaking long term, Taylor proposed that by 2035, MCPS will reimburse families for the cost of remedial mathematics and literacy courses taken at Montgomery College for students needing extra support.
He also said he was committed to each individual school achieving a rating of four or five by the state in 2035. Currently, many schools receive threes and even twos.
The tentative budget will be adopted Feb. 4, and final adoption is expected June 10.
