At last night’s Mount Airy City School Board meeting, members expressed concerns about current and potential budget shortfalls that are facing school systems across the state.

Dr. Darrin Hartness told board members that this year will be the last year of federal stabilization and stimulus money that now in large part helps fund schools.

“The state is using it to offset classroom supplies and materials and non-instructional support. The state is using this money to pay for clerical and custodial work. In addition, the state is going to take $121 million in state lottery proceeds to fund classroom teachers,” Hartness said.

He said the legislature decided to fund classroom positions from kindergarten to third grade with this year’s budget. He said the remaining $113 million left in the lottery fund for next year will be split among all of the school districts based on enrollment and that money will be spent on construction.

“We already knew coming into this budget that we had to make a $305,000 discretionary reduction. To Mount Airy City Schools, that is a little over $300,000 that we have to find and send back to the state. We knew that coming in and we identified that during the budget process. On top of that, there is about a 1.7-percent cut. That is balanced a little bit by the lottery money coming in for classroom teachers,” Hartness said.

He said the thing that is a little “unnerving” about this year’s budget is that it depends on $500,000 in Medicaid revenue coming in from the federal government.

“We now hear that money won’t make it to the states. Originally they said we would have a contingency plan and possibly have three to five days of furlough for all employees to cover that hole in the budget. Then at the last minute that changed to everybody needs to be prepared for an additional 1-percent reduction. That means another $100,000 for the school system that we didn’t plan for,” Hartness said.

He said other news from the state budget means that driver’s education class funding was restored, but no money for school buses was allotted for this year. No teacher salary increases were included in the budget. There are no changes to the state’s health plan. The state will fully fund health insurance for employees, but there is an 8.9-percent increase in premiums for families that is effective this week. He said there is a projected 10-percent increase each year over the next five years.

“We are going to make it through this school year confident that we have planned and that we will be OK. Honestly, the year that scares me and scares all superintendents in North Carolina is next school year. Right now, I’m hopeful the economy will recover, but we don’t know if there will be additional funding at the state level. If not, we are facing a $1.2 billion shortfall in public school funding without federal stabilization and stimulus money. That is significant,” Hartness said.

Hartness asked the board, “What does this mean to us? Our projections are — if we have a $1.2 billion shortfall that would equate to a $1 million shortfall for our system. It would force us to make some major adjustments — just as every other school district.”

He said state legislators cannot expect counties to fill in those kind of gaps. He urged board members to talk to their state representatives asking them to find a solution before the problem hits home.

In other business, Vickie Cameron, executive director of curriculum and instruction, gave a presentation on literacy.

“The simplest definition is being able to read and write. The ability to read, write, comprehend and apply. Read for understanding in all content areas. It is the ability to use these skills in shaping the course of one’s life,” Cameron said.

B.H. Tharrington Primary Principal Lydia Lovell and Jones Intermediate Principal Chad Beasley came to address the board about what curriculums are being provided at their respective schools to help further literacy.

Everyone in the meeting agreed that getting parents involved and trying to expand media centers at the schools is key to improving literacy among students.

“This is the foundation of what we do,” said Hartness.