Advocacy before the JCC BOS

Dear School Supporters,

I am happy to report that the advocacy movement for funding our
schools continues to be strong.

If you have already made your thoughts known to our representatives, THANK YOU! If you have not and wish to, you can simply "CLICK HERE" , add a message of support, and send. The message will go automatically to county and city representatives.

On January 10 the James City County Board of Supervisors held a
prebudget public hearing to hear from citizens before its budget
retreat on January 20 at which it will provide county staff with
guidance regarding the budget. This public hearing is usually poorly
attended. This year, however, was a different story.

I delivered a statement for Support Schools Now (below). Support
Schools Now also endorsed a statement read by Clive Fenton of the
York-James City-Williamsburg NAACP. The NAACP statement was
further endorsed by the League of Women Voters of Williamsburg,
the Education Advocacy Group and the WJC Education
Association.

In addition, Elli Williams of PTA Council and Bill Bryant of the
Education Advocacy Group directly addressed the supervisors.
Kelly Osterhout of the WJC Education Association would have
spoken but was unable to attend the meeting for personal reasons.

To make YOUR voice heard, simply "CLICK HERE" to send a
message to our county and city representatives.

Thank you for supporting our schools.

Mike Ludwick

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Mr. Chairman, Board members and Mr. Wanner,

My name is Mike Ludwick. I live at 4493 Village Park Drive West in
the Berkeley District. I am the founder of Support Schools Now, an
organization whose mission it is to ensure, through advocacy and
education, that resources are made available to Williamsburg-
James City County Public Schools so that our children receive the
best education possible.

Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you this evening.
Support Schools Now enthusiastically and strongly endorses the
statement made by the NAACP. A similar statement was presented
to the WJC School Board in December, endorsed by 68 individuals
along with several local organizations.

On January 21 [sic] you will be having your budget retreat. It is
imperative that you provide guidance to the county staff so that
necessary funding is provided for our schools. I’m sure you are
already aware of some of the budget challenges our schools face
this coming year: maintaining highly competitive salaries and
benefits, increasing required contributions to the Virginia Retirement
System, fuel costs, raising academic achievement through Reading Renewal, and more students which means more teachers, more trailers and new schools.

Early projections show a 5% increase leaves the school division
$1M short of a budget that only maintains what we have and just
accommodates growth. What is the percentage increase the
schools will need ultimately? I’m sure as the superintendent
develops a true budget of need, one that will help to make WJC the
best in Virginia, and as the school board considers it and as we see the
projections on state funds and sales tax revenue, the percentage will
become apparent. Whatever it may be, we ask you to fund it.

Keep in mind the independent audit of the school division that
showed how efficient our schools are.

There are some who say the Board of Supervisors does not have
the political will do what is necessary for our schools. We disagree. We
are more hopeful than we have been in a long time that this Board will
provide the schools with the funding they need. We understand it will not
be easy for you because you will face other pressures, but know that we
will support you 110% as you do right by the schools.

On April 25 another public hearing on the budget is scheduled. That
hearing will be regarding the proposed county budget. It is our sincere
hope that, based on the budget guidance you provide at your retreat, I can
stand before you on April 25 and say THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for providing the funding needed by the schools.

We look forward to that day and I look forward to thanking you.
Until then, best of luck in the budget process. If we can help in any
way, please let us know. Thank you.