New Hanover County schools cutting budget

As reported last week, the tight economy has forced New Hanover County to tighten its budget by four million dollars. In order to do that, school funding is being cut by a half percent, which is just about $360,000.

New Hanover County school administrators met Monday to discuss how they would tighten their budget. They said the cuts did not come as much of a surprise given the state of the economy.

School leaders say $360,000 is a significant amount, but compared to their $214 million budget, they should be able to manage with only a few changes.

The school’s senior staff proposed putting an immediate hiring freeze into affect, except for teachers, and to put a freeze on traveling for staff workshops.

Despite the cuts, administrators say the quality of the student’s education will not change.

Valita Quattlebaum, NHC school spokesperson said, “The board has made it very clear that the student’s education is the number one priority, and we want the education process to continue and we do not want to cut that at all.”

Administrators are also meeting with principals and other department heads to ask them what else can be cut. All of the proposals will be taken to the finance committee later this week for approval. The board will then make the final decision November 6th.

School leaders hope this will be the last budget cut that they have to make, but they understand there could be more, depending on the economy.