by Audrey Thomasson
LOTTSBURG—The Northumberland school board last Monday unanimously adopted a $17.7 million proposed budget that school leaders hope will have a big impact on accreditation and teacher retention during the fiscal year beginning July 1.
On a motion by District 3 member Gerald Howard, the school board approved a $17,732,956 proposed budget, an increase of $481,041 or 2.79% over the current budget. If adopted by supervisors, the county’s share of the increase would be $121,132.
In a joint session with Northumberland supervisors, school superintendent Dr. Holly Wargo said Northumberland faired slightly better on an adjusted Local Composite Index (LCI) of 0.7187%, a decrease from the current number of 0.7542%. LCI determines the county’s portion of the budget, which, next year, has a positive impact of $170,660.
District enrollment is projected to be 1,260, a decrease of 20 students. If the proposed budget is approved, the per pupil cost would be $13,741…