Worcester Co. BOE Adopts Revised FY27 Budget Amid Funding Shortfall
WORCESTER COUNTY Md. – The Worcester County Board of Education (BOE) has approved a revised operating budget for Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 following the County Commissioners’ decision to shortfall requested funding by nearly $2.8 million last week.
Board members and Worcester County Public Schools (WCPS) system leadership say they have made a deliberate decision to prioritize honoring negotiated agreements with teachers and support staff, preserving early childhood education opportunities, and protecting essential student safety investments. The budget also preserves pre-kindergarten (Pre-K) programs in Pocomoke, allowing the school system to accept the State’s Pre-K Expansion grant serving students at Showell (SES) and Ocean City (OCES) elementary schools. Superintendent Annette Wallace said protecting high-quality Pre-K experiences are integral to the educational foundation of WCPS students.
“Protecting Pre-K in Pocomoke was not simply about preserving a program,” Superintendent Wallace said. “Similarly, expanding Pre-K opportunities at SES and OCES was never about growth for growth’s sake—it was about protecting opportunities for our youngest learners and maintaining an investment in them and their communities that will pay dividends for years to come. It is unfortunate that the Commissioners’ majority—including Pocomoke and Ocean Pines’ own representatives—did not feel similarly.”
However, the funding shortfall has caused significant reductions in other areas, including cuts to summer and afterschool programming, reductions to dual enrollment funding, and decreases to transportation, technology, maintenance, instructional supplies, contracted services, and equipment replacement budgets. Further, the Board has opted to leave the vacant Chief Operations and Human Relations Officer position unfilled and absorb the position’s responsibilities across the executive team. Lastly, plans for an elementary RISE intervention program have been eliminated as a result of the decreased funding.
“Every option before us carried consequences, and there were no easy answers,” BOE President Todd Ferrante said. “I find it deeply disappointing and frustrating that the majority of County Commissioners – Commissioners Abbott, Bertino, Bunting, and Elder – who voted against fully funding our budget request have once again chosen not to make public education a priority… [Students] deserve leaders who will fight for them, invest in them, and believe in their future. I hope our community will make its voice heard and send a clear message that Worcester County’s children must always come first.”
To watch the BOE Special Meeting held on Jun. 8, click here.
