School Board adjusts budget, returns it to county

JACKSON, Tenn. — The school board met Thursday to discuss what they will do with their budget after the county commission voted to send it back to them.

After quick discussion, they voted to remove the $1.2 million for laptops that was the issue with finalizing the budget.

This should allow their budget to be approved by the county commission.

“We actually resubmitted the budget [minus] the 1-77 portion of the budget. So we just submitted the maintenance of effort,” said Andre Darnell, a School Board member.

Board member Jason Compton made a recommendation on how the school system can still receive the money for the laptops.

“I would make the recommendation that the superintendent would ask the Education Foundation to fund the laptops,” Compton said.

Superintendent Dr. Marlon King said he likes the idea of asking the Education Foundation to fund the laptops.

He would need to send a proposal to the Education Committee for them to vote.

There were also talks about how the Board plans to finish under budget like they have done in previous years.

“It’s from our leadership from Dr. King and our administration. They are making sure that those dollars are being allocated to the right departments. We are managing those dollars properly. We’ve been showing over the past three years with this administration that we are very proud as a board, and hopefully, that everyone, the city, the community will see this and understand that we are being responsible with our dollars,” Darnell said.

The school board and superintendent are eager to get back to their main focus of educating students.

“That’s the whole purpose for the majority of people. I would say for everyone on the board. We are focused on our students, and ensuring that the teachers are receiving what they need, ensuring that our district is the best district that it can be,” Darnell said.

Pay raises are still included in the budget.

The county commission will meet again on June 30 to go over the budget.

The Jackson-Madison County School System also released their “JMCSS Year in Review: 2022-2023” on Thursday.

You can view their video on YouTuber here.

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