Berrt Baker (left) and Robert "Dizzy" Garten asks questions of Covington School Finance Director Rebecca Irvine at the Wednesday, March 29, 2017 school board session. (Alleghanyjournal.com photo by Jerry E. Clark)

Covington School Board Passes Budget Holds One Hour Closed Session Too By Jerry E. Clark   Covington, VA (March 29, 2017) - The Covington School Board spent nearly an hour in closed session dealing with a personnel matter on Wednesday evening - but when the board came back into open session, no announcement was made of any action taken. That said, the board then received a detailed summary of its budget from Finance Director Rebecca Irvine. After a brief discussion, the board voted to approve its $11,962,121 balanced budget unanimously. The budget is based upon an ADM (average daily membership) of 953. The state of Virginia per student funding is based upon an average of daily student "membership" between the first of the year and March 31st. Prior to that vote, the board also approved a measure which would allow the addition of another special education teacher for Jeter Watson and Edgemont, but as of the current time did not indicate a funding source for that position. Irvine suggested to the board that between now and the end of the school year, additional savings or other avenues that might allow that position to be funded could be identified. During that discussion, board member Robert "Dizzy" Garten suggested that with the addition of new school buses, the system might see some savings in the repair and maintenance line of the budget. Other savings items might include the hiring of individuals at the bottom of the salary scale who would replace those at the top of the salary scale who either leave or retire. The AlleghanyJournal.com has posted several videos of the session: • Covington School Board Passes Its 2017-2018 Budget • Irvine Gives School Board Budget Update • Covington School Board Votes To Add Special Education Position School board chair Cindy Bennett suggested that it's now time for the board to take its budget to the Covington City Council. That particular time wasn't identified, but probably will occur in the near future. * * * * *

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