SCHOOLS ASK FOR MORE MONEY MONTGOMERY BUDGET CALLED `WISHFUL'

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, January 16, 1992                   TAG: 9201160330
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: A1   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: GREG EDWARDS NEW RIVER VALLEY BUREAU
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG                                LENGTH: Medium
SCHOOLS ASK FOR MORE MONEY MONTGOMERY BUDGET CALLED `WISHFUL'
Montgomery County's School Board wants to put a personal computer in each of the county's 700 public school classrooms.
But that would be costly, and it could cause even more problems for next year's proposed school budget.
The School Board added $4.3 million Tuesday to a budget Superintendent Harold Dodge proposed last week. Dodge's budget already was $8.5 million higher than last year's.
The proposed 1992-93 school budget is roughly one-third larger than this year's budget. It would require an increase in county funds of around $11.7 million - almost two-thirds more than county taxpayers are contributing this year.
If the budget gets final School Board approval in its present form, it will pose a problem for the county Board of Supervisors. Because of the slow economy, the supervisors are expecting an increase of $555,378 in tax revenue next year unless rates are raised.
Some supervisors said county residents can't afford a tax increase.
Ira Long, the new supervisors chairman, called the School Board's proposals "wishful thinking." The supervisors are in no mood to raise taxes, he said.
Supervisor Joe Gorman of Blacksburg said he would have to see "a real good justification" for any new spending before he would support a tax increase.
But School Board member Michael Sowder sees things differently. He told his fellow board members Tuesday that people in his district, which includes the Riner area, are telling him they don't want support for education cut and are open to tax increases if that's what it takes to improve the schools.
The School Board has decided to ask for the funding it thinks the school system needs next year and leave it up to the supervisors to decide whether the county can afford it.
In the past the supervisors have asked the School Board to restrain its budget demands, and the board has agreed, said School Board Chairman Robert Goncz. But no such request came this year, he said.
Dodge has estimated that it would cost roughly $1 million more than this year's $39.2 million budget to keep pace with inflation. But Dodge has proposed spending $47.7 million to meet the school system's educational and salary needs. The School Board's additions come on top of that.
The School Board's budget deliberations still are preliminary, and the board has not taken a final vote on anything. Goncz said the vote could come at next Tuesday night's meeting.
The single largest increase in Dodge's proposal is $4.9 million for raises for school employees, most of whom received no raises this year.
If the salary request for teachers is granted next year, the average yearly salary for county teachers would be $31,556. That would still leave them almost $4,000 behind the statewide average salary of $35,360.
Other major increases proposed by Dodge and given preliminary approval Tuesday by the School Board include $1 million for 24 new teachers, $720,000 for 15 new school buses and $200,000 for student supplies.
Other new funding would go toward dropout prevention, field trips, band uniform replacement and additional elementary school guidance counselors.
The computer network was the biggest item added to the budget by the board itself. Startup costs for installing the computer system have been estimated at $2.6 million and annual costs at $444,000.
Installing the computers would help Montgomery County catch up with other localities. Pulaski County, for instance, already provides computer instruction at every grade level; its voters passed a $2 million bond issue to purchase school computers.
In addition to the computers, the School Board voted 5-4 to keep a proposal to pay for family health-care coverage for school employees. For current participants the additional costs would be $469,470; but administrators warned that the costs could go up if more employees are drawn into the plan by the offer to pay for family coverage.
Other major budget additions given preliminary approval included hiring of athletics-activities directors for each high school and new foreign language and art programs for the elementary schools.

by Archana Subramaniam by CNB