DATE: Friday, March 14, 1997                TAG: 9703140624

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY DENISE WATSON, STAFF WRITER

DATELINE: NORFOLK                           LENGTH:   62 lines

SCHOOL BOARD GETS BUDGET OF $209 MILLION, A RISE OF 4.7% $6.1 MILLION IS PROPOSED FOR EMPLOYEE RAISES AND HEALTH-CARE COSTS.

Nearly $5 million could give school employees a raise. Close to $1.1 million could make many Norfolk students better readers. Another $789,000 could buy books and resources to begin the district's Quality Schools Initiative.

These are a few highlights from the proposed $209.7 million school operating budget Superintendent Roy D. Nichols Jr. and his staff presented to the School Board Thursday for the next school year.

The budget represents a $9.5 million increase - 4.7 percent over the current year's budget with no increases from last year's $77.2 million in city funding. The budget lists seven major priorities for the district:

$1.1 million to employ teachers, principals and purchase equipment for an anticipated 550 more students.

$789,000 to buy textbooks and other supplies to begin the Norfolk Quality Schools Initiative which will focus on several issues, including improving student academic achievement, attendance and strengthening class curriculum.

$1.1 million to employ more reading specialists, and resources to continue the district's campaign to increase reading and literacy.

$561,000 to hire more teachers and expand the early childhood education program for 4-year-olds.

$413,000 to increase technology support for students, teachers and administrators.

$6.1 million to fund employee salary increases and cover increases in health care costs.

$763,000 to expand alternative education programs.

Before Nichols began the budget discussion, School Board Chairman Ulysses Turner opened the meeting on an ominous note:

``I will say it doesn't go far enough,'' Turner said. ``It represents flat funding from the city and we'll have to do some prioritizing.''

Because of decreases in city revenues, the city gave the district $750,000 less than originally budgeted this year. The proposed budget's revenue projections show increases in federal and state funds. The only drop - a $445,000 decrease - is from the city's slice of pie. About 37 percent of the school system's proposed budget will come from the city.

Nichols said City Council wants to meet more frequently with the School Board to discuss budgetary concerns but said that council feels strapped with money requests from the various city departments.

``We've been told quite clearly that they don't have the money and they're bending over backward to help us,'' Nichols said. ``If they bend any more, they'll break.''

Some School Board members said that City Council has been generous in some respects, appropriating additional windfalls in federal and state money to the schools.

The district is expecting an additional $2 million in federal and state money, some from federal Impact Aid, money which is given to localities with high populations of military dependents, and state money for increases in enrollment. The city is expecting to receive the money soon.

School officials said they will request that money from council be used to buy school equipment for the next school year.

The next public hearing on the school budget is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at Ruffner Middle School, 610 May Ave. KEYWORDS: SCHOOL BUDGET

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