Brevard County parents concerned about possible school district budget cuts

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — The Brevard County community will learn more about potential budget cuts the school district is facing at a meeting Monday evening.

The school board has identified nearly $18 million in proposed cuts, along with some items that could be added to the budget if funding actually increases.

Parents will be able to review a list of potential cuts if funding decreases at the meeting at Viera High School Monday night.

Brevard County Public Schools leaders are still months away from adopting a final budget for the 2014-2015 school year, but officials are already holding a series of meeting to discuss potential budget cuts.

"I'm upset again. I just can't believe we're in the same place we were last year," parent Christine McClure said.

In 2013, the school board closed three schools, and McClure's children attended one of them. This year, school closures aren't on the list of potential cuts for the upcoming school year, but plenty of other items are, including eliminating the robotics budget, cutting fine arts support and increasing class sizes.

"Again, it seems to us that we are cutting too close to home where it's important to kids," McClure said.

If state funding should increase, the district could add discretionary dollars and corridor busing. Some parents would like to be less dependent on state money.

"We're concerned if we don't generate enough income, we're going to see a lot more program be cut like music and robotics," Adrian Laffitte, with Brevard Save Our Students, said.

Brevard Save Our Students was formed to support a half-cent sales tax for the school district.

Without a half-cent sales tax, the district would have to transfer $8 million from its operating budget to its capital budget. If voters fail to pass the tax proposal, the district said there could be another round of school closures.

WFTV