BY NICOLE BOWMAN-LAYTON

Board of Education member Ricky Browder (District 2) called for Edenton and Chowan County to stop promoting themselves as a retirement community and instead support Edenton-Chowan Schools by investing in families and children.

Browder’s comment followed Chief Financial Officer Sandy Pittman’s review of part of the district’s projected budget for the 2025-26 academic year during Tuesday’s board meeting in the Professional Development Center.

While the decline in student enrollment has been consistent over the past few years, Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources and Auxiliary Service Jana Rawls said that further staff reductions could compromise the quality of education and services provided to students.

“There reaches a point where you can no longer cut staff in order to be able to provide the best programs for our students,” Rawls said. “We are probably at that point or past that point right now. So as we continue budgeting process, we should keep that in mind.”

The district currently has 228 total staff members. Of that total, 107 are teachers.

This academic year, the district has 1,740 students — about 7.63 students per every staff member. For the 2025-26 academic year, the district is projected to have 1,673 students.

With uncertainty around state and federal funding, school leaders remain cautious about further adjustments to the budget projections. Pittman noted that the district had not yet received the state planning allotments for the next budget.

Superintendent Tammi Ward noted that the district administration did not allocate any funds for Title I, a federal program that supports students from low-income families and addresses achievement gaps.

“We are being very cautious about putting any positions in Title I right now, because we want to make sure that we’ve got payment for those,” Ward said. “We’re waiting to learn more about the funds, when those will be sent to us, and by what organization we will receive those from.”

Based on the 2025-26 projected allotments, the district’s teacher budget includes 107 positions, with six unallotted positions in grades kindergarten through 12.

The unallotted positions in the proposed budget include:

• additional speech therapist
• 1% additional after-school program supplement for John A. Holmes and Chowan Middle School teachers
• coaching supplements
• certified supplements
• classified supplements
• device refresh for CMS
• math curriculum adoption for Grades K-5

The total teacher-assigned local budget is $5,553,994. The proposal includes a 3% salary increase, $500 per person increase in health insurance costs, and a 1% increase in the retirement match.

Several board members noted that the district’s greatest asset is its people. One way to market itself to people is tied into Browder’s comment about Edenton’s identity. Browder said that continuing to market and develop Edenton and Chowan County as a retirement destination hurts the district.

“We have to stop promoting Edenton and Chowan County as a retirement community. That mindset is only contributing to our declining ADM [Average Daily Membership],” he said. “We need to focus on bringing in families who will enroll their children in our schools and help sustain our district.”

The sentiment underscores an awareness that economic development, affordable housing, and job opportunities must be aligned with school district goals. Without a concerted county-wide effort to attract and retain families with school-aged children, the district will continue to struggle with declining enrollment, impacting state funding and educational offerings.

“If they can’t get paid here, they’re gonna go somewhere else to get paid. And some of that is not always tied to the monetary piece. It’s the working condition piece as well,” Browder noted of families and teachers. “We’ve got Edenton-Chowan Schools East Campus right next door in Perquimans County.

“Why? Because a lot of our teachers and staff have left here and gone there for whatever reason,” he continued. “We have to — somehow or another — make Edenton-Chowan Schools the place where people want to come and be a part of.”

Several board members noted that the facilities are among the district’s best recruiting tools. While the district has some of the best facilities, its other offerings must be enhanced to make it a more competitive employers.

Among the financial concerns discussed, the board examined teacher and staff supplements, additional instructional needs, and capital outlay projects.

Browder noted that in the past, the district created a supplement program that would gradually increase employees’ pay to be on par with Currituck High School over seven years. The district halted the program in 2024.

“We need to get that back in place,” he said of the supplement.

Despite the financial constraints, board members remain committed to making Edenton-Chowan Schools the “schools of choice” in the region.

As the budget process continues, the district will work closely with county and state officials to address funding shortfalls.

Board Chairman George Lewis complimented the schools’ principals for working with the staff and trying to work best with their limited funding.

“We know we’ve still got a lot of work to do, but I think we have a, a good jump start,” he said of the budget process.

Also during the meeting:

• Second-graders from White Oak Elementary School talked to the board about the Cubbie Water Buddies program, which helps second-graders learn how to swim. This fall, 132 out of 138 students participated in the program, which was held at the YMCA in Elizabeth City.
• The board approved entering into a contract with the North Carolina School Boards Association for custom policy manual work. The agency will look at the district’s policies over a three-year period, remove any redundant policies, and seek approval for updated and new policies. The total cost of the contract will be xxx.
• The board approved the Chowan Middle School Eighth-Grade Field Trip to Washington, DC.
• The board did not discuss coaching supplements, which had been on the agenda, but was removed during the meeting.

The John A. Holmes High School construction update and a review of the district’s AI-use policy will be featured in a future article.