Education
BY ANGELA BONILLA & NICHAELA SHAHEEN
WISD holds early budget discussion
MISD predicts balanced budget for FY 2025-26 Montgomery ISD is predicting a balanced budget for the 2025-26 fiscal year, Superintendent Mark Ruffin said during a March 20 meeting. The gist Following the passage of the $5.5 million voter-approval tax rate election in November, Ruffin said MISD is in the position of not seeing a deficit. At the beginning of the 2024-25 fiscal year, the district faced a shortfall of about $4.3 million, according to prior reporting. Ruffin said the com- munity should expect a balanced district budget, increased compensation and fiscal transparency. Diving in deeper The district’s budget is made up of 33% state funds while 67% comes from local taxes; federal funds make up less than 1% of general revenues, Ruffin said. Ruffin said some of the funds from the VATRE have gone into: • $500 retention stipends Conroe ISD begins rezoning process Conroe ISD’s board of trustees heard updates about the rezoning process for Timber Mill High School on March 18. The details Assistant Superintendent of Operations Chris McCord discussed the process of attendance boundaries for Timber Mill High School, located at 2700 N. Loop 336, Conroe. The Attendance Boundary Committee will discuss the schools in the feeder zone. McCord said the rezoning timeline is: • March 18: Presented the rezoning process • May 13: Present an update of rezoning scenarios to the board • July 15: Present recommendations Learn more To learn more, visit www.conroeisd.net/ page/timber-mill-feeder-zoning-process.
Superintendent Mark Ruffin said the budget objectives for the 2025-26 school year include: Compensation: Providing competitive salaries across all positions
Willis ISD held a budget workshop to discuss the 2025-26 fiscal year budget for the district March 19. What to know Garrett Matej, the district’s assistant superintendent of business and finance, discussed the district’s upcoming budget and touched on things that would impact it, including the current state funding for the 2024-25 school year that will be finalized in September, the legislative session and the new Calfee Middle School.
People: Staffing campuses and departments based on campus needs
Financial stability: Ensuring long- term financial health
Safety: Continuing to improve safety and security across MISD
Students: Continuing to offer programs that meet student needs
CISD begins to discuss 2025-26 budget amid legislative uncertainty Conroe ISD board of trustees discussed projec- tions for its fiscal year 2025-26 budget at an April 1 special meeting, while acknowledging uncertainty surrounding enrollment and potential changes to funding with the Texas Legislature underway. In a nutshell CISD Chief Financial Officer Karen Garza pre- sented projections to the board and discussed the challenges of formulating the budget due to: • The impact of possible legislation during the current legislative year • The current budget deficit of $11.9 million • Unknown impact of possible education sav- ings accounts being discussed by the Texas Legislature • The need to support the growing special educa- tion population • Hiring four teachers for class size reductions • Hiring six paraprofessionals • Increasing the police stipends, purchasing addi- tional police vehicles and maintaining staffing levels above the state requirement Looking ahead Ruffin said the district may look to ask voters to pass a bond as early as 2026.
Willis ISD projected 2025-26 fiscal year expenditure highlights
Overall budget
Calfee Middle School Salaries: $3.59M Operating expenses: $622,406
Salaries: $74.64M Operating expenses: $15.56M
Total: $90.2 million
Total: $4.22 million
SOURCE: WILLIS ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT
Conroe ISD’s finances
Estimated total revenue Estimated total expenditures Estimated budget shortfall
2024-25 budget
$700.05M
$11.9M
$711.97M
Projected 2025-26 budget
$719.30M
$4.76M
$724.06M
SOURCE: CONROE ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT
What they’re saying House Bill 3 would create state-run education savings accounts, which families could use to pay for private school tuition and other educational expenses, such as textbooks or transportation, Community Impact previously reported. Garza said the estimated projected student enrollment for 2025-26 is 73,500 students with a daily attendance rate of 93%. As the property value rate has yet to be determined, Garza gave a projected tax rate of $0.9348 per $100 valuation, down slightly from the $0.9447 per $100 valuation projection she provided in December.
17
CONROE - MONTGOMERY EDITION
Powered by FlippingBook