SNOW HILL– While several citizens this week spoke in support of the local school system’s budget request, others said more transparency was needed from Worcester County Public Schools.
Most speakers at this week’s public hearing on Worcester County’s proposed $241 million budget addressed education, which accounts for more than half of the county’s spending. Several said they wanted the school system to have the funding it needed to hire and retain quality teachers and maintain small class sizes. Others questioned the school system’s ever-increasing budget. Commissioner Caryn Abbott said she wanted a forensic audit of the school system’s spending for the past five years.
“We owe it to all county taxpayers to be as transparent as possible,” she said.
When it came time for comments on education at the county’s annual budget hearing Tuesday, Superintendent Lou Taylor thanked the Worcester County Commissioners for their ongoing support of the school system. He said Worcester County students were more successful than those elsewhere in the state but stressed that the world was constantly advancing and becoming more competitive.
“It is essential we prepare our students for their future and not our past,” he said. “This requires continued investment in our people to ensure we can offer competitive salary and benefit packages to recruit, hire and retain the very best teachers and staff available. Research shows the teacher is the number one factor in student success.”