This is being reposted from a social media conversation, regarding the budget and the relationship between the school board and county commission:

What nobody seems to want to accept, is that the “budget” the BOE “passes” in April is not the actual, final budget. It is ONLY a REQUEST and is required of every office funded by the Knox County Commission. To be able to complete all necessary steps required by law, budget REQUESTS have to be submitted before data regarding available funds is complete. (Final numbers will be available in JULY.)

The process is not the nefarious BS the media desperately wants it to be. There are some political people (not politicians, btw), who are also desperate to control the narrative and THEY are stirring the idea that there is some kind of Cas Walker-esque fist-fight brewing between the BOE and Commission.

There is not.

We get along quite nicely.

The state will not have final budget numbers for us until JULY. It has nothing to do with anyone’s feet dragging. It has to do with following the processes that are in place.

In the meantime, state budget numbers have been updated twice since the last meeting, and the administration is looking to see where those funds will best be utilized.

Final numbers COULD even make the Mayor’s recent proposal unnecessary! If that were the case, but we accepted the Mayor’s funding proposal, we could end up being committed to spending money out of reserves unnecessarily.

The entities involved in budgeting ARE talking to each other. A LOT. The media often does not bother to find that out…

I actually had a meeting with finance and accounting Friday morning. They also invited Chris Caldwell from the Knox County finance department. Though it was not at all related to any of this funding, we DID have a discussion about how easy it now is to have a discussion between entities. (And Mr. Caldwell also hand delivered updated estimates for tax revenue to our KCS finance folks.)

The groups on both sides of the street are working to make our limited funding work.

If our communities want more for our students and our schools, people have to be willing to invest more money through increased taxes, by shortchanging other entities, by shopping locally, so that tax dollars stay in Tennessee, or some other way. We cannot support all of the programs community members demand, without additional funds.

Though I have not yet seen this letter, Mike Donila reports:

“In the letter sent to middle school parents and staff, Interim Superintendent Buzz Thomas said the construction of a new Gibbs Middle School and Hardin Valley Middle School could affect as many as 11 of the district’s 14 existing middle schools.”

http://www.screamsfromtheporch.com/2016/11/kcs-new-middle-schools-will-change.html

Dates for community meetings to get input prior to making these changes are listed below.  I hope to see you there!

• Nov. 28 at Farragut Middle School (Hardin Valley Middle)
• Dec. 6 at Gibbs Elementary School (Gibbs Middle)
• Jan. 17 at Hardin Valley Elementary School (Hardin Valley Middle)
• Jan. 24 at Holston Middle School (Gibbs Middle)

Meetings will also be held in the spring, after a zoning proposal has been formulated.

If you are unable to attend one of these meetings, please submit your ideas to:  rezoning@knoxschools.org.