I don’t want this to be just another talking session where we all talk and moan about class sizes in Prince William County, but I would like to look at actual solutions about what we can do---not just political sound bites--- what it’s going to cost. And where the rubber meets the road. Is the Board willing? Are we willing to do what it takes as far as the budget to bring down class sizes?While both the School Board and the BOCS planned to meet to discuss how they might work together to fund an aquatic center, they had also decided to discuss class sizes and other pressing issues that affect the School Division. Stewart requested they come prepared with their data, saying, “we’re going to have to get some numbers from the school system, some solid numbers to bring down class size.” According to County Executive Melissa Peacor, the school board already agreed to bring that data with them, along with data on teacher pay, benefits and the cost of helping to fund the Virginia Retirement System. Stewart also asked his staff to prepare some numbers from their 5-year tax plan, saying they do not need to know everything at this point. However, school board members have often lamented how the 5-year plan on which they model their budget often decreases from the previous year in order to keep taxes low. At the last meeting between the two boards, Woodbridge acting school board representative Stevne Keen voiced his concern over that budgeting issue. The challenge for the supervisors will now be to balance the reduction of class sizes with the desire of their constituents to not increase taxes.
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