Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, November 5, 1995 TAG: 9511060062
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
You're more likely to hear praise than criticism if you ask school board candidates in Western Virginia whether their counties provide sufficient funds for schools.
And most candidates said they would not support an increase in county taxes to provide more money for schools.
If they have complaints about school funding, most focus on the state, not the local governing body.
"The Pulaski County Board of Supervisors goes far and beyond the call of duty when it comes to funds for education," said Sybil Atkinson, a candidate.
"They are definitely a board with far-reaching visions as to the needs of the children of Pulaski County," Atkinson said.
"There is always room for improvement, but the [Board of Supervisors] provides more than 50 percent of total funds for Roanoke County schools," said Carol White, a candidate.
In Bedford County, candidate Stanley Butler said the supervisors have a finite amount of money for the county government.
"Education receives the largest share of the budget and appears to be placed on an equal or greater priority than most of the county activities," Butler said. "Based on what the county has to allocate, yes [sufficient funds are provided for schools]."
A majority of the candidates who responded to a survey by The Roanoke Times said they believe that the boards of supervisors in their counties fund education adequately.
Most support higher salaries for teachers, but they believe that it can be done without raising local taxes. Some said that the state ought to provide more money for education; others said the spending priorities can be shifted to provide more funds for salaries.
Although school boards are being elected for the first time, they will not have the power of taxation. They still must depend on boards of supervisors to fund school budgets, the same procedure that has been used for appointed school boards.
Still, there are some candidates who believe their counties should provide more money for schools, and they would support a local tax increase to do that.
In Franklin County, the schools find it difficult to get needed funds, even though the school budget is the biggest part of the county budget, said Perry D. Hambrick, a board candidate.
"We are losing some of our best teachers each year to surrounding areas because we cannot compete with the wages being offered," he said.
Hambrick said he would support an increase in county taxes to provide more money for schools.
"People tend to forget that the people on local boards also pay taxes," he said. "They seem to believe that they are the only ones being taxed. No one likes taxes, but you very seldom get anything free."
The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors has a long record of underfunding education, said Wat Hopkins, a candidate who said he would support an increase in county taxes.
"A small increase would not overburden taxpayers and could create sufficient revenue for education," he said.
James Klagge, another candidate in Montgomery County, also said that the supervisors have not adequately funded education.
Klagge said he would support an increase in taxes to provide more money for schools.
In Roanoke County, Vern Jordahl, a candidate in the Cave Spring District, said that the county has not provided enough money for school renovations and increasing teacher salaries to the national average.
But Jordahl said that a tax increase should be a last resort to provide more funds for schools.
"More efficient use of allocated monies should be explored first. There is yet an amazing amount of waste of county resources," he said.
David Sulzen, a candidate in Floyd County, said his county could provide a little more money for schools, but that is minor compared to the increases that should be expected from the state.
Sulzen said he would not mind paying more taxes if he knew the money would be used for schools, but he does not believe Floyd County residents can afford to pay more taxes. The additional funds for education should come from the state, he said.
Keywords:
POLITICS
by CNB