City School Board Approves Budget Request, Expresses Concern About Federal Grants
The division is especially worried about grants for Medicaid and school nutrition.
By Devin Schwers
CORRESPONDENT
The Fredericksburg City School Board last week approved a $65.2 million proposed budget for fiscal year 2026, which begins July 1. The proposed budget passed unanimously and is an increase of $6.1 million from the current fiscal year’s adopted budget.
Significant changes in the proposed budget expenditures include a 5% salary increase for certified staff, the division’s contribution to state-funded staff bonus, funding for the new Gladys-West Elementary School, an increase to health insurance rates and contracted services, and additional elementary instructional assistants.
About $38.7 million of the proposed budget is set to come from local government; however, there is a gap of approximately $5.5 million between estimated revenues and expenses.
The current estimated revenue is “based on what we believe we will most certainly get from the state and what we got from the city last year, ” said Matt Rowe, Chair of the School Board.
“There are bills that have passed through the General Assembly that provide additional funding but still await the Governor’s signature,” Rowe said. However, this additional funding has not been included in the proposed budget.
“Hopefully we will have a more clear picture on state funding before we meet with the city to discuss how to further close the gap,” Rowe said.
The new Gladys West Elementary School—which will open in August in the current Walker-Grant Middle School—has a proposed operating budget of $6.4 million.
The new Walker-Grant Middle School—which is under construction in the Idlewild neighborhood and will also open in August—has a proposed operating budget of $8.4 million. This is a $452,762 increase from the middle school’s 2025 budget, finance director Jennifer Brody said.
Concern about Federal Grants
Federal grants make up $6.2 million of the proposed budget. However, last week, the School Board released a document outlining federal grant programs that are at risk due to Executive Orders and actions of the Trump Administration.
The document labels federal grants and programs as being of significant, high, moderate, or no concern.
Grants for Head Start and Medicaid are of “significant concern,” and grants for school nutrition are labeled as “high concern.”
Grants labeled as being of “moderate concern” include Title I, II, III, and IV grants, which support low-income students, English language learners, and efforts to improve student achievement and enrichment; the Carl Perkins grant, which supports career and technical instruction; and grants that support special education students as provided by Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
There are no federal grants or programs that are labeled as being of “no concern.”
The city’s Head Start grant is not currently experiencing delays in reimbursement. However, the division has been notified that there may be a delay in new grant awards. The Head Start grant year closes March 31, but new grants may be delayed until after April 1.
The Virginia Department of Education has cautioned Fredericksburg City Public Schools that they should expect changes in funding in 2026 that could limit the ability of school divisions to provide free meals to all students.
According to the report sent out by the division, “no concrete information is available” regarding cutbacks to the federal Medicaid grant. However, the report cites concerns over the current federal proposals to cut Medicaid spending, saying, “We have concerns that Fredericksburg City Public Schools will not receive Medicaid reimbursements for the 2026 fiscal year.”
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