2024/25 Budget Update
Aug 1, 2024
Balanced Budget Approved for 2024/25
At the School Board meeting on July 23, 2025, the Board of Directors approved the West Valley School District budget for the 2024/25 school year.
As administration and staff worked on the budget development, the focus was to minimize direct impact to the classroom and to ensure that staffing matched student enrollment while maintaining low class size.
The targeted maximum class size for the School District without overload is:
Kindergarten, 21 students
Grade 1, 22 students
Grade 2, 23 students
Grade 3, 25 students
Grade 4, 26 students
Grade 5, 27 students
Mid-Level Campus, 30 students
Innovation Center and High School, 32 students
Class size limits do not apply to secondary classes with traditionally larger classes such as band, choir, and physical education.
With the elimination of the Emergency Relief funds by the federal government, the administration looked for alternative funding sources for certain positions. In addition, the work duties for some staff members were changed to match categorical funding sources.
The work of our Mid-Level Campus staff members last fall was commendable as they were able to ensure that students returned the free/reduced meal documentation forms. As a result, the Mid-Level Campus will qualify for High Poverty Learning Assistance Program Funds for the 2024/25 school year. This additional funding will be beneficial to the Mid-Level Campus and it should be noted that this additional funding assisted with the overall budget development for the school district.
The funding system for public schools in Washington State is complex. Certain formulas developed by the state do not provide realistic staffing ratios for our schools. In addition, the federal government instituted an arbitrary deadline for the expenditure of the Emergency Relief funds. As a result, district administration has worked over the past two years to prepare for the “funding cliff” with the elimination of the federal Emergency Relief funds.
The budget for the 2024/25 school year includes the following appropriations:
|
General Fund |
$89,771,023 |
|
Associated Student Body Fund |
$702,569 |
|
Debt Service Fund |
$8,587,450 |
|
Capital Projects Fund |
$16,113,257 |
|
Transportation Vehicle Fund |
$495,000 |
Overall, the West Valley School District was able to develop a balanced budget for the 2024/25 school year without a “Reduction in Force.” All reductions in staffing were made through attrition and retirement. The development of the budget was a team effort with staff and administration working at the school and district level to ensure the financial stability of the school district while maintaining our focus on the classroom.
With the 2024/25 budget finalized, staff members from West Valley are looking forward to the first day of school for our students which will be Tuesday, August 27, 2024.