Frederick County School Board Approves Operating, Capital Budgets For Fiscal Year 2026

The Board also signs contracts with its three bargaining units.Frederick, Md (KM) The Frederick County Board of Education on Wednesday approved a fiscal year 2026 operating budget. The spending plan totals $970-million which is a 3.1  percent  increase compared to the current budget.The School System says the new budget maintains existing programs and services, accommodates systemic growth and addresses inflationary expenses.”The approved budget allows FCPS to continue offering the same programs and services our community relies on,”  says Superintendent Dr. Cheryl Dyson, in a statement. “During this challenging budget year, I am appreciative of the collaboration and cooperation of our board, our elected officials and our negotiated agreement partners to support public education throughout the process. In FCPS, we remain focused on giving students the resources and opportunities  they need to be successful.”The Board also approved a capital budget for fiscal year 2026 which totals nearly $172.9 million. That amount includes state as well as local funding. The Capital Budget provides money for a Middletown co-located Elementary and Middle School, a new Yellow Springs Elementary School, and a new Elementary School 41 which will be located near the intersection of Route 144 and Mussetter Road; also, design funding for a Brunswick High replacement school, and six systemic projects.”I am grateful to our local and state leaders for supporting  capital improvement projects that are needed to support the growth of our system, and keep our existing buildings maintained,” says Board of Education President Rae Gallagher, in a statement. “These significant projects will benefit our community in the years to come.”Fiscal year 2026 begins on July 1st, 2025.Tentative agreements have been reached with all three of the Frederick County School System’s bargaining units. These contracts were ratified by the Frederick County Teachers Association, the Frederick Association for School Support Employees, and the Frederick County Administration Supervisory Association. They were signed Wednesday night by union representatives and the School System.FCPS officials say the new contracts contain a salary resource pool of two-percent on the average cost of living increase applied to the entire scale with no strep increases. There are increases in the medical, vision, prescription and dental insurance premiums.”This year, the full contract was open for negotiations, so a significant amount of time was spent on language items in addition salary and benefits, which are negotiated annually,” says Missy Dirks, the President of the Frederick County Teachers Association, in a statement. “We are pleased to have worked with the Board of Education’s team to bring improvements to several areas of the contract, including the transfer process, educator work time to prepare for the start of the school year, and middle/elementary planning time. However, the tentative agreement was accepted by the membership by the smallest margin in at least 10 years—only 61 percent–largely due to the lack of a real salary enchantment, with no step and only a 2 percent COLA which does not keep up with the actual cost of living. Given the limited funding the Board of Education faces, we came to  this settlement, but this is not sustainable if we want to retain the best educators here in Frederick County.”The new agreements go into effect on July 1st. 2025..By Kevin McManus