Earlier this week, Cecil County Public Schools hosted a work session on the education services budget and on Monday they will host a hearing on the proposed budget for FY 2016. These meetings are milestones on the path to the final budget for the 2016 fiscal year and another chapter in the story of school funding in Cecil County.
It is apparent that Cecil County has put our school system in a precarious position because they have underfunded CCPS for the last 5 years. One of the county’s largest employers (even after cutting staff due to budget restraints) with the responsibility of educating thousands of our children, is essentially living paycheck-to-paycheck.
Cutting Expenses & Dipping into Reserve Funds
In fiscal year 2009, school funding in Cecil County was $69.9 million. Not until this year has the funding been at that same amount and this doesn’t take into account any adjustments for inflation; that $69.9 million in funding in 2009 would need to be increased to $77.1 million for FY 2015 in order to keep pace with inflation.
Since the funding stalled in 2009, CCPS has been cutting expenses, finding efficiencies, and dipping into reserve funds when necessary but there are only so many cuts that can be made before the school system is compromised. Prioritizing educational services has meant curtailing spending on things like facilities, transportation, and administrative infrastructure yet at a certain point these issues must been addressed.
Despite the funding shortfalls, CCPS has continued to provide a quality education using various measurements graduation rates.
If full funding of our public schools is important to you, please contact the County Executive and members of the County Council today.
| County Executive | Tari Moore | [email protected] |
| County Council | Alan McCarthy | [email protected] |
| Joyce Bowlsbey | [email protected] | |
| Dan Schneckenburger | [email protected] | |
| George Patchell | [email protected] | |
| Robert Hodge | [email protected] |
To make it easier, just copy these email addresses and paste them into an email: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
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