School board discuss draft budget for upcoming fiscal year

The Christian County School Board got a glimpse of the budget for the upcoming fiscal year and received a clean audit report at Thursday’s meeting.

To start the meeting, Board Chair Tom Bell and Vice Chair Lindsey Clark were reelected for another year to their respective positions.

Then, District Finance Director Jessica Darnell presented the draft budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year. Since the Kentucky General Assembly is currently in a budget session, Darnell says the Support Education Excellence in Kentucky (SEEK) fund factors could be changed.

Based on prior factors, SEEK funding is projected to be around $31 million which is a projected decrease of over $2 million. For Average Daily Attendance (ADA) funding, Darnell says she is projecting a decrease, but calls it a worst-case scenario.

The draft budget also has over $10 million being carried over from the prior budget and a possible 3% salary raise for all staff. Darnell will present a tentative budget to the board in May.

Turning toward the financial audit, Anna Herr from Duguid Gentry & Associates, PSC says the district remained compliant with all state and federal requirements and had no negative findings.

Construction continues on schedule at the consolidated Christian County High School. Board members approved two change orders for new outdoor canopy lights and revisions to card readers.

The board also approved the purchase of ViewSonic boards for classrooms, totaling nearly $275,000, and security cameras totaling around $218,000.

Lastly, the board members approved the purchase of six buses for over $962,000.