The superintendent works closely with the school board, the Leadership Team, the community, and Local Government to present the needs of the school division. Community engagement is critical during the budget development process. The school board and superintendent gather feedback and prepare a funding request that incorporates community input to advance the strategic priorities of the school board.
In the fall, school enrollment projections are updated and staffing allocations are developed. Around this time, the division’s 5-year financial forecast is planned and the school board provides initial guidance to support staff in budget preparation. Through December, school and department budgets are submitted and proposed changes in revenues and expenditures are provided.
Revenue estimates are developed after the release of the local transfer estimate in October and the proposed state budget in December.
A Draft Funding Request is presented to the school board in February. The request reflects the full needs of the school division; proposed expenditures may be higher than estimated revenues for this reason. The school board makes amendments to the Draft Funding Request after a series of work sessions in preparation for the adoption of the request for the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors (BOS).
From February to May, the BOS finalizes the budget for Albemarle County and sets the final school transfer amount.
A balanced budget is then adopted by the school board.
