Budget battles drive school board race

STAUNTON – Amy Darby served on the Staunton Schools Consolidation Committee and was stunned by the economic numbers the local school district was dealing with.

“It brought home the dire budget crunch we are in,’’ said Darby, a mother of two school-age children and a juvenile probation officer who is among four candidates seeking three open seats on the Staunton School Board next month. “We could not continue what we are doing.”

Incumbents Ron Ramsey and Angie Whitesell and candidate John Hart Jr. also think the next school board will spend a lot of time in the next few years crunching budget numbers to keep instruction intact.

The 2011 Staunton Schools budget includes a loss of 17 people, including 15 support staff who are in part replaced by the use of inmate labor for custodial services. Staunton also is closing Dixon Elementary and consolidating the school with Ware Elementary.

Whitesell, who is seeking a third term and serves as board chairwoman, said Staunton schools already are projecting an $800,000 shortfall in the 2012 budget.

“The number one challenge is using the underfunding and crafting a viable budget to maintain the instuctional program,’’ Whitesell said.

Ramsey, who has served six years on the board, said despite the tight funding, the challenge is to give students the chance to compete.

“Some of the people at public hearings said, ‘You don’t need foreign language.’ It is required to go to college. It’s called progress. We give the students everything they need to compete for jobs or college admission,’’ he said. “Look at the want ads in the paper. Employers are requiring things now they were not before. Colleges are raising the bar. We want our students to meet the criteria.”

Hart, a retired Department of Environmental Quality employee and a former wastewater treatment plant operator for the City of Staunton, said both his children are products of the Staunton schools.

“A lot of their success is because of the preparation they received in Staunton,’’ Hart said. “It’s my time to give back to the community.”

Darby said the current economic conditions speak to the Staunton Schools working collaboratively with neighboring school divisions on purchasing and to look for creative ways to acquire resources.

“We can’t cut back on supporting our children being educated,’’ she said.

Whitesell said the difficult economy has challenged Superintendent Steven Nichols and other administrators.

“There has been a tremendous pulling together of our staff. It really has been amazing. They understand the tightening of the belt and that we are running on a very lean budget. The response has been overwhelming,’’ she said.