Thursday night Fayette County Schools held the first of two planned open forums to get input on the district's 20-million dollar budget shortfall.
Close to four hundred teachers, parents and students came to be heard. The crowd first got an overview from Superintendent Tom Shelton as to how the budget works, what money can and can’t be used to cover the shortfall and how we ended up in the red. And Shelton offered this assurance. “We’re considering reductions in the ranges of three to ten percent in ways that do not eliminate programs and I want to emphasize that. We’re not talking about eliminating any program. We’re talking about making adjustments so that we do not significantly impact any services to students.”
After Shelton’s presentation, the room broke off into groups to have open discussions along with a facilitator from the district. An overview from each table was shared with the room at the end of the night and school leaders will be given specific notes and suggestions to look over. A similar meeting is set for this Tuesday from 6 to 8 at Northeast Christian Church on Star Shoot Parkway.